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A  Florida 

Enchantment 


NOVEL 


BY 

• 

ARCHIBALD   CLAVERING   GUNTER 

AUTHOR   OF 

MR.    BARNES    OF    NEW    YORK,"    "MR.    POTTER    OF    TEXAS,"    "THAT 
FRENCHMAN!"    "MISS    NOBODY    OF    NOWHERE,"  ETC. 

AND 

FERGUS    REDMOND 


NEW    YORK 

THE    HOME    PUBLISHING   COMPANY 

3  EAST  FOURTEENTH  STREET 

1892 


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The  Most  Successful  Novel  of  the  Season. 

My  Official  Wife 

BY 

Col.  RICHARD   HENRY  SAVAGE. 


What  America  says  of  it. 

"  One  of  the  most  entertaining  books  of  the  season. 
It  reads  strangely  like  one  of  Gunter's  masterpieces." 

— Rochester  Sunday  Times,  June  i4th,  1891. 
"  In  it  the  most  exciting  complications  arise,  making 
the  story  one  of  absorbing  interest." 

— Cleveland  Plaindealer,  June  i4th,  1891. 

"  It  would  be  hard  to  find  a  more  exciting 
story  than  '  My  Official  Wife.'  A  series  of  events 
and  situations  which  increase  in  excitement, 
mystery  and  danger.  A  book  through  which  the 
reader  will  dash  with  wild  eagerness." 

—NEW  YORK  HERALD,  June  21st,  1891. 

What  Europe  says  of  it. 

"  Far  beyond  the  average.      Exceedingly  powerful 
and  exciting." — Newcastle  Chronicle,  July  loth,  1891. 
"  One  of  the  ablest  of  its  kind." 

— Carlisle  Patriot,  July  nth,  1891. 
"  Deserves  to  be  one  of  the  most  popular  tales  of  the 
season." — The  Morning  Post,  London,  July  i5th,  1891. 
"Plenty  of  dash  and  go." 

— Saturday  Review,  July  i8th,  1891. 

"Wonderfully   clever," 

—LONDON  TIMES,  August  lOth,  1891. 

"A  delightful  story." — Taiwhnitz,  Leipsig. 


FOR   SALE   EVERYWHERE. 

THE  HOME  PUBLISHING  CO.,  3  East  14th  Street,  N.  Y. 


A  FLORIDA  ENCHANTMENT 


Nobel 


BY 


ARCHIBALD     CLAVERING    GUNTER 


AUTHOR    OF 


MR.  BARNES  OF    NEW  YORK, 

TEXAS,"    "THAT    FRENCHMAN!"    "MISS 
NOBODY  OF   NOWHERE,"    ETC.,    • 

AND 

FERGUS    REDMOND 


NEW  YORK 
THE    HOME   PUBLISHING   COMPANY 

3  EAST  FOURTEENTH  STREET 
1892 


COPYRIGHT,  1891, 
BY   A.   C.   GUNTER. 


All  rights  reserved. 


Press  of  J.  J.  Little  &  Co. 

Astor  Place,  New  York 


ARCHIBALD  CLAYERING  GUNTER'S 
Celebrated  Novels, 


MR.  BARNES  OF   NEW  YORK. 
MR.  POTTER  OF  TEXAS. 

THAT  FRENCHMAN! 
MISS  NOBODY  OF   NOWHERE. 


Story  for  Children  of  All  Ages. 
SMALL  BOYS  IN  BIG  BOOTS. 

ILLUSTRATED. 


M585729 


CONTENTS. 


BOOK  I. 

THE    METAMORPHOSIS    OF    MISS    LILLIAN    TRAVERS. 

PAGE 

CHAPTER         I. — The  Purchase  at  Vedder's,  7 

"  II.— The  Peeping  Eve  of  the  Ponce  de 

Leon,    -  1 8 

"  III. — The  Widow's  Fluttering  Pulse,     -     26 

"  IV. — "  For  Women  who  Suffer  !  "  41 

"  V. — The  Marvellous  Record  of  Hauser 

Oglethorpe,      -  "5° 

VI.— "  Why  Not?"  -  64 

BOOK   II. 

THE    BOYHOOD    OF    LILLY    TRAVERS. 

CHAPTER   VII. — "  Ah  !   Naughty  Boy — What  Shall 

I  Christen  You  ?"    -                  -  79 

«        VIII. — The  Hop  at  the  Ponce  de  Leon,  91 

IX.—"  My  Man,  Jane,"                            -  108 
.     "             X. — "  Have  I,  like  Frankenstein,  Raised 

up  a  Monster  to  Destroy  me  ?"  122 


CONTENTS. 


PAGE 


CHAPTER     XI.— "  Good-by,  Bessie  !"    -  -143 

"          XII.— The    Monster    Becomes    Danger 
ous,     -  -  150 
XIII.— Doctor  Fred  Would  Like  a  Kiss,     164 


BOOK   III. 

THE    WONDERFUL    ADVENTURES    OF    MR.     LAWRENCE 
TALBOT. 

CHAPTER  XIV.— Wild  Oats,  -  -  181 

"  XV.  — Floating  Garments  from  the  Ockla- 

waha,  193 
"  XVI. — Doctor  Freddie  plays  the  Virtuous 

Detective,  -  214 

"  XVII.— A  Duel  among  the  Orange  Trees,  230 
"  XVIII.— The  Horrible  Metamorphosis  of 

Doctor  Frederick  Cassadene,  -  242 

"  XIX.  — "  I've  Come  for  that  Seed,"  -  252 


A   FLORIDA    ENCHANTMENT, 


BOOK  I. 

HE     METAMORPHOSIS    OF 

Miss     LILLIAN     TRAVERS. 


CHAPTER    I. 

THE   PURCHASE   AT   VEDDER'S. 

"  YES,  right  there  ! — The  one  between  the  rattle 
snake's  fangs  and  the  alligator's  skin." 

"  Oh  !  the  little  black  box,"  remarks  the  sales 
woman. 

"  Yes — the  ebony  casket,"  says  Miss  Lillian  Trav- 
ers  to  the  woman  who  presides  behind  the  counter 
in  that  portion  of  Vedder's  extraordinary  museum, 
which  is  devoted  to  commerce  in  the  form  of  dis 
posing  of  Florida  curiosities  and  horrors,  to  North 
ern  tourists.  These  crowd  the  place  now,  for  it  is 
the  beginning  of  February  of  the  year  1891,  and 
already  many  have  escaped  from  wintry  winds  and 
snowy  blasts,  to  throng  St.  Augustine,  bask  in  its 
sun,  and  drink  in  the  mild  orange-scented  breezes, 


S  A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT. 

that  prevail  the  first  four  months  of  the  year,  to 
make  this  place  a  paradise  to  lovers  of  tropic  scenes 
and  nursers  of  failing  lungs. 

"  This  thing  ?  "  exclaims  the  woman  in  an  aston 
ished  tone  of  voice,  for  she  has  been  expecting  a 
liberal  order  in  sharks'  jaws,  manatee-skins,  and 
bead-work,  from  her  customer,  and  is  rather  sur 
prised  at  the  young  lady's  selection. 

"  Yes,"  .rejoins  Lilly  Travers  hurriedly  ;  "  how 
much  is  it  ?  " 

"  Ain't  no  price  marked  on  it — but  five  dollars'll 
do!" 

"  I'll  take  it  !  " 

"  Five  dollars  for  that  !  "  cries  a  bright,  laughing 
voice  in  Miss  Travers'  shell-like  ear.  This  is  from 
pretty  Bessie  Horton,  who  being  a  resident  of  St. 
Augustine,  is  showing  Lillian  the  sights  of  the  town. 
"Five  dollars  for  an  old  moth-eaten,  cobweb-cov 
ered  black  box,  without  any  key  to  its  lock  !  " 

"  Hush  ! "  whispers  the  New  York  girl,  to  her 
lively  companion.  "  That's  the  reason  I  want  it ;  it 
hasn't  been  opened  for  a  long  time — there  may  be 
something  in  it."  Then  she  turns  to  the  woman 
who  is  about  to  wrap  up  her  purchase,  and  says  : 
"  Do  you  know  where  that  thing  came  from  ?" 

"  No,"  replies  the  saleslady ;  "  it's  been  on  that 
shelf  ever  since  I  came  here.  I  told  Mr.  Vedder 
that  I  didn't  think  it  was  any  good  keeping  it  there, 
as  nobody  would  buy  it  ;  but  he  said,  *  This  is  the 
shop  to  sell  odds  and  ends !  Always  find  a  cus 
tomer  for  everything,  some  time  or  other.'  ' 

"  Can  I  see  Mr.  Vedder  ? "  inquires  Miss  Lilly 
eagerly. 


A  FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT.  9 

"  Oh,  he's  gone  out  for  the  afternoon  ;  he's  over 
on  Anastasia  Island,  hunting  rattlesnakes — our 
stock's  pretty  low." 

Here  their  conversation  is  broken  in  upon  by  a 
juvenile,  high-keyed  voice  crying  to  the  ebbing  and 
flowing  crowd:  "  Walk  in  now,  ladies  and  gents. 
The  animals  in  the  back  yard — the  'gators  in  the 
water  trough — and  the  snakes  in  the  snake-room. 
Our  new  diamond-back  rattler  is  about  to  eat  a 
squirrel.  Please  walk  in  to  the  feed,  and  don't  faint 
if  the  moccasin  hisses  !  " 

This  harangue  calls  forth  from  various  ladies 
stifled  exclamations  of  horror,  emphasized  by  viva 
cious  feminine  shudders.  But  Lillian  Travers  takes 
Vedder's  boy  aside  and  says  nervously  to  him  : 

"  What  do  you  make  such  horrid  remarks  for? 
One  would  think  you  like  to  frighten  people." 

"  So  I  does,"  grins  the  youth  solemnly,  "  when  the 
old  man's  out.  Wouldn't  you  like  me  to  show  you 
our  stuffed  rattler?  It's  the  largest  in  the  world — 
it's  twelve  feet  long  and  as  big  as  a  boa  con 
strictor." 

"  No,"  replies  the  young  lady  with  a  little  stifled 
cry;  "  but  I  would  like  you  to  tell  me  if  you  know 
where  this  little  black  box  came  from  ?  "  She  has 
the  article  in  her  hand. 

"  Oh,"  answers  the  boy,  "  that  was  taken  out  of  the 
sand  on  'Stasia  Island,  a  couple  of  miles  below  the 
light-house — about  five  years  ago.  I  was  a  kid  at 
the  time."  He  is  only  about  fifteen  as  he  makes 
the  remark.  "  And  it's  been  lying  up  there  ever 
since."  He  points  to  the  dusty  shelf. 

"  No  one  has  opened  it  ?  " 


10  A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT. 

"  No  one,  as  I  knows  on.  We  ain't  had  any  time 
to  bother,  as  there  warn't  no  key.  Perhaps  dey 
don't  want  it  sold." 

"  It  is  already  sold  !  "  cries  Miss  Travers  excitedly. 
"  I  have  bought  it !  Don't  you  dare  try  and  take  it 
from  me !  I — I  have  paid  for  it  !  "  which  she  has 
already  done,  and  clinging  to  her  prize,  she  rushes 
out  into  Bay  Street,  as  if  fearing  she  may  be  pur 
sued,  and  her  treasure  taken  from  her. 

"  Why  did  you  pay  five  dollars  for  such  a  worthless 
thing  ? — and  you  are  really  frightened  that  they  will 
take  it  away  from  you,"  laughs  pretty  Bessie  Hor- 
ton,  as  she  follows  her  companion. 

"  Don't  you  see,"  answers  Lilly  hurriedly,  as  she 
walks  along  the  unpaved  street,  drawing  in  the  fresh 
breeze  that  is  blowing  from  the  open  waters  of  the 
Atlantic,  over  Matanzas  Inlet,  as  if  she  enjoyed  it. 
"  Don't  you  see,  Bessie,  that  this  is  perhaps  a  dupli 
cate  of  the  ebony  cabinet  on  Aunt  Constantia's 
parlor  table,  which  is  considered  one  of  our  family 
heirlooms  ?  That's  the  reason  I  paid  five  dolkrs 
for  it." 

"Yes — I  remember  I've  seen  it  on  Miss  Connie's 
table,"  acquiesces  Bessie. 

"  I  would  have  paid  fifty,  if  they  had  had  the 
sense  to  ask  me,"  continues  the  possessor  of  the  box 
eagerly, — for  Miss  Lilly  Travers,  when  she  is  twenty- 
five  will  come  into  a  very  pretty  New  York  fortune. 
At  present  she  is  considered  twenty-one  by  her 
friends,  and  hardly  looks  even  that  age  as  she  trips 
gracefully  along  with  cheeks  reddened  in  the  sea- 
breeze  that  is  tossing  her  delicate  laces  and  mousse- 
line  de  soie  about  her  lithe  and  charming  figure  and 


A  FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT.  II 

giving  passing  glimpses  of  a  pair  of  pretty  feet  and 
charming  ankles  perfectly  booted  and  hosed. 

But  if  her  figure,  which,  though  tall,  is  exquisitely 
graceful  and  feminine,  is  alluring  to  the  eye,  Lillian 
Travers'  face  is  even  more  so.  Though  an  Ameri 
can,  there  is  almost  a  foreign  piquancy  in  her  laugh 
ing  lips  and  sparkling  eyes.  These  last  are  dark, 
grand  and  scintillating,  but  at  times  of  wondrous 
softness  and  tenderness, — indicating  that  when  this 
young  lady  loves  she  loves  deeply,  passionately 
— even  jealously.  The  whole  effect  of  her  counte 
nance  would  be  softly  feminine,  were  it  not  for  a 
Grecian  nose,  as  delicately  chiselled  as  that  of  a 
classic  statue,  but  with  a  peculiar  dilation  of  the 
nostril  that  gives  to  it  whenever  ,her  pride  is 
deeply  wounded  a  haughty,  even  aggressive,  firm 
ness. 

She  is  in  direct  contrast  to  the  pretty  Southern  girl 
who  trips  beside  her  trying  to  keep  step  with  the 
longer  and  firmer  stride  of  her  Northern  companion  ; 
for  Miss  Bessie  Horton  is  a  plump  little  blonde, 
with  golden  hair  and  violet  eyes  and  a  rounded 
figure  whose  graceful  outlines  and  exquisite  contours 
go  straight  to  the  masculin'e  eye  and  enslave  the 
masculine  heart.  She  has  the  soft,  cooing  speech 
that  is  peculiar  to  Southern  women,  and  is  a  mem 
ber  of  an  old  Florida  family  who  make  their  home 
at  St.  Augustine,  her  father  owning  considerable 
orange  lands  and  phosphate  properties  in  the  south 
ern  portion  of  that  State. 

Miss  Travers,  on  the  contrary,  is  an  importation 
direct  from  New  York.  Her  father  had  been  a 
Wall  Street  banker,  though  her  mother  was  a 


12  A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT. 

member  of  the  Oglethorpe  family,  one  of  the  best 
known  in  Florida,  descendants  from  the  grand  old 
governor  of  colonial  times.  At  present  she  is 
visiting  her  aunt,  Miss  Constantia  Oglethorpe,  a 
maiden  of  some  fifty-five  summers  and  winters,  who 
lives  near  the  shell-road  in  a  pretty  villa  that,  sur 
rounded  by  orange-trees,  palms,  and  cacti,  faces  the 
blue  waters  of  Matanzas  Inlet. 

Upon  this  lovely  piece  of  water  the  girls  are  gaz 
ing  as  they  pass  along  Bay  Street  and  enjoy  its 
picturesque  beauty.  Faced  as  this  street  is  by  old 
buildings  on  one  side,  that  give  it  an  air  of  anti 
quity  and  romance,  enlivened  by  its  crowds  of  white- 
sleeved,  bare-armed  boatmen  at  each  of  the  little 
wharves  that  run  out  into  the  limpid  waves — embel 
lished  by  its  Northern  tourists  and  a  few  Southern 
planters  and  orange  growers — dotted  by  shining 
negroes  and  yellow-skinned  mulatto  boys ;  and 
fringed  on  the  other  by  the  rippling  waters  of  the 
bay,  which  are  made  lively  by  sail  and  fishing  boats 
and  bright  yachts  whose  white  wings  have  brought 
them  from  the  far  North  in  search  of  perpetual 
summer  ;  under  the  azure  sky  and  soft  warm  sun  it 
is  like  the  Riviera  in  April,  though  no  mountains 
are  back  of  it  to  give  it  grandeur,  nor  antique  pal 
aces  to  lend  it  romance.  Out  on  the  blue  ripples  is 
a  steam  pleasure  ship  whose  millionnaire  owner  has 
fled  from  winter  to  seek  abstraction  from  business 
in  pursuit  of  game  and  fish  on  Southern  rivers,  or 
beautiful  women  in  the  gardens  of  the  Ponce  de 
Leon  or  balconies  of  the  C6rdova. 

Lillian  Travers  thinks  the  sparkling  scene  very 
beautiful  after  New  York  snow  and  cries  ejithusi- 


A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT.  13 

astically,  "  Isn't  this  worth  thirty-two  hours  in  a  rail 
road  train,  Bess  ?  " 

"  Oh  !  just  look  at  that  steam  yacht  ;  can  you 
read  its  name  ?  G-a-d-a — the — the  Gadabout  !— 
what  a  funny  name — but  what  a  darling  boat  ! 
Her  owner  must  be  very  rich — and  I  hope  young," 
cooes  Bessie,  her  blue  eyes  devouring  the  graceful 
craft  lying  at  anchor  some  hundred  yards  from  the 
shore. 

"  Rich,  but  not  young,"  remarks  Miss  Travers 
sententiously.  "  I  know  Mr.  Remington  quite  well. 
You  can  see  for  yourself. — He's  landing  now."  She 
points  to  a  naphtha  launch  which  is  depositing  its 
passengers  upon  a  little  wharf  nearly  opposite  the 
two  young  ladies. 

"Oh,  the  gentleman  papa  is  going  to  sell  the 
phosphate  lands  to,"  cries  Miss  Bessie  ;  for  her 
father,  Major  Calhoun  Benham  Horton,  has  given 
up  any  animosity  he  may  have  felt  toward  North 
erners  at  the  close  of  the  war,  in  the  delight  of  sell 
ing  them  phosphate  properties ;  the  Southern  eye 
being  as  quick  to  see  and  the  Southern  hand  as  deft 
to  catch  the  almighty  dollar  as  those  of  their  per 
haps  shrewder  but  no  more  eager  brothers  of  Con 
necticut  and  Massachusetts. 

As  she  says  this,  a  gentleman  is  passing  through 
the  crowd  of  boatmen  that  gather  round  him 
eagerly  offering  their  craft  for  the  various  pur 
poses  of  pleasure,  fishing  and  excursion,  about  th£ 
inlet.  Arriving  at  terra  firma  the  yachtsman  sees 
the  two  young  ladies,  and,  taking  off  his  hat  po 
litely  to  Miss  Travers,  whom  he  knows  very  well,  is 
introduced  to  Miss  Bessie. 


14  A  FLORIDA  ENCHANTMENT. 

A  moment  after  the  Southern  girl  whispers  to  the 
Northern  one  :  "  You  were  quite  right ;  he  is  too 
old  for  anything  except  giving  me  a  sail  on  his 
yacht."  For  Stockton  Remington  is  a  man  who  is 
sixty  and  has  spent  two-thirds  of  his  life  in  fighting 
for  a  fortune  in  Wall  Street,  and  his  face  shows 
signs  of  the  struggle. 

"  This  is  an  unexpected  pleasure/'  he  remarks, 
"  my  dear  Miss  Travers.  I  had  supposed  you  could 
not  run  away  from  New  York  gayeties." 

"Oh,"  replies  Lillian  lightly,  "  when  Lent  begins, 
New  York  functions  cease,  and  I  come  to  Florida. — 
I  arrived  on  the  '  special  '  last  evening." 

"  Ah,  in  search  of  fun  ?  "  remarks  Mr.  Reming 
ton. 

"  Perhaps,"  answers  the  young  lady,  though  her 
countenance  grows  serious  as  she  utters  the  word. 

"  Bound  for  the  centre  of  town  ?  " 

"Yes.  I  have  just  been  to  Vedder's  and  made  a 
purchase,  and  am  now  in  search  of  a  locksmith," 
says  Miss  Travers  smiling. 

"  A  locksmith  ?  "  exclaims  the  gentleman,  astound 
ed — "a  locksmith  to  unlock  the  alligator's  jaws  ?  " 

"Oh  no  ;  I  have  just  bought  this  little  black  box, 
and  want  to  find  out  what  is  inside  of  it,"  returns 
Lillian,  holding  up  the  article  for  inspection. 

"  May  I  carry  it  for  you  ?  " 

"  Not  for  worlds — its  contents  may  be  very  pre 
cious,"  laughs  Miss  Travers. 

"The  article  does  not  look  very  promising,"  re 
marks  Remington  examining  it — "  I  hardly  think 
you'll  get  your  money's  worth." 

"  Oh  yes,  I  will  !  "  answers  Lilly  gayly. 


A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT.  15 

"  Of  what  ?  " 

"  Curiosity — romance — whatever's  inside  it  " — 
returns  the  girl,  and  they  pass  up  Cathedral  Street, 
chatting  on  the  various  subjects  peculiar  to  the 
time  and  place.  At  the  corner  of  St.  George  Street 
Miss  Travers  says  :  "  We  must  bid  you  good-by, 
Mr.  Remington,  for  the  locksmith's." 

"  You  are  not  stopping  at  any  of  the  hotels,  Miss 
Travers  ?  "  queries  the  yachtsman.  u  I  must  know 
your  address.  The  Gadabout,  is  lonely  !  You  must 
make  up  a  sailing  party  for  me  soon." 

"  No  ; — with  my  aunt,  Miss  Oglethorpe,  just  off 
the  shell-road,  where  I  shall  be  delighted  to  see 
you." 

"  I  shall  undoubtedly  drive  on  the  shell-road,"  re 
sponds  Mr.  Remington  gallantly.  "  At  present  I 
am  on  my  way  to  the  Ponce  de  Leon  to  see  Mrs. 
Lovejoy." 

"  Stella  Lovejoy  ?  "  asks  Lilly  eagerly,  with  a  shade 
of  apprehension  in  her  voice,  which  has  been  laugh 
ing  a  moment  before. 

"  Certainly,  the  pretty  widow.  She  came  down 
on  the  Gadabout  as  my  guest  and  as  chaperon  for 
my  party,  with  Mr.  Wilkes  and  Miss  Key  of  Balti 
more.  Now,  having  grown  tired  of  sea-life,  the 
whole  crowd  have  deserted  my  ship  for  more  roomy 
quarters  at  the  Ponce  de  Leon.  There's  gratitude 
for  you  !  "  answers  the  yachtsman  with  a  grin. 

"  Mr.  Wilkes,"  cries  Miss  Bessie  suddenly, — "  Mr. 
Charley  Wilkes  ?  " 

"  Yes." 

"  Why,  he  is  the  young  man  to  whom  father 
sold  the  orange  grove  on  Indian  River.  He  comes 


1 6  A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT. 

here  every  winter.  He  isn't  a  New-Yorker, — he's 
a  Floridian.  He's  too  consumptive  to  be  a  New- 
Yorker  !  "  laughs  the  Southern  girl.  Then  she  says 
with  a  pretty  pout :  "  Of  course  he  is  devoted  to  the 
beautiful  widow." 

"  He  was,  on  the  yacht,"  replies  the  gentleman 
sententiously  ;  "  but  on  shore  " — here  he  chuckles 
slyly  and  remarks  impressively — "  there  is  a  doctor." 

"  A  doctor  !  Who  ?  "  asks  Miss  T ravers  sud 
denly,  turning  to  Remington  who  notes  with  aston 
ishment  that  the  young  lady's  eyes  have  somehow 
grown  quite  sad. 

"  Oh,  I  never  tell  secrets,"  the  New-Yorker  says 
pointedly. — Then  as  if  to  cut  off  further  questions, 
he  raises  his  hat,  and  remarks  suggestively,  "  Shall 
I  give  your  regards  to  Mrs.  Lovejoy  ?  " 

"  Certainly,"  replies  Lillian  in  a  set  tone  of  voice, 
as  Remington  turns  towards  the  Ponce  de  Leon, 
wondering  what  the  deuce  affects  Miss  Travers,  who 
is  believed  in  New  York  society  to  be  heartless,  as 
she  has  never  given  her  heart  away  to  any  of  its 
beaux  or  social  lions,  though  many  have  sought  it — 
for  her  beauty  is  great  and  her  fortune  will  be  large 
when  she  is  twenty-five. 

"  And  now,  the  locksmith's,"  laughs  Miss  Bessie. 
"  I  am  dying  to  see  what  is  in  the  ebony  box." 

"Ah  !  the  locksmith's,"  ejaculates  Lilly,  as  if  she 
had  suddenly  remembered  something — an  absent- 
minded  mood  that  remains  with  her  until  they  reach 
the  artisan's  place  of  business. 

After  a  few  moments'  examination  and  some 
minutes  employed  in  fitting  a  key  to  its  wards,  the 
workman  remarks  :  "  The  lock  is  rather 


A   FLORIDA  .ENCHANTMENT.  17 

"Rusty!  I  should  think  so,"  cries  Bessie.  "It 
perhaps  has  not  been  opened  for  a  hundred  years." 

"  It  works  as  if  it  hadn't  been  opened  for  a  thou 
sand,"  replies  the  artisan  ;  but  after  deluging  the 
wards  with  oil  and  working  the  key  about  in  the 
lock  with  his  vise-like  hands  for  some  little  time  the 
bolts  finally  yield  to  his  strong  fingers  and  spring 
back.  He  is  about  to  open  the  lid,  when  Miss 
Travers,  who  has  been  gazing  at  him  in  a  preoc 
cupied  manner,  suddenly  gives  a  gasp,  seizes  the 
box  and  astonishes  both  the  locksmith  and  Miss 
Bessie  as  she  exclaims  :  "  Not  now  !  There  may  be 
a  secret  inside  it — a  secret  for  which  I  paid  five 
dollars.  Please  do  the  box  up  in  paper;  I'll  take  it 
home  with  me  for  examination  there." 

"  And  I  am  not  going  to  see  what  is  inside  that 
box  now?  If  they  are  jewels — I  shall  expect  a 
present,"  pouts  Bessie  with  curious  eyes,  for  the 
girl  has  been  letting,  her  imagination  run  riot  on 
the  contents  of  the  old  casket  and  would  not  be 
surprised  if  it  disclosed  the  wealth  of  Golconda  in 
diamonds  and  rubies. 

"  Not  until  we  get  to  my  aunt's,  anyway — and 
then  perhaps  I  shall  want  the  secret  all  to  myself," 
returns  Lilly,  who  has  apparently  awakened  to  what 
is  passing  around  her  and  thrown  off  any  cloud  that 
may  have  been  on  her -mind.  "Then,  perhaps,  if 
you  are  a  good  girl " 

"  Oh,  I'll  be  very  good,"  laughs  Bessie  ;  "  with 
a  secret  ahead  of  me,  I  am  always  to  be  relied  upon. 
Suppose  we  go  to  the  Ponce  de  Leon  and  listen  to 
the  band  ;  it  makes  me  feel  romantic  and  poetic 
these  sunny  mornings." 


1 8  A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT. 

So  chatting  together,  the  two  girls  walk  straight 
to  the  Alameda  and  are  soon  standing  in  Old  Spain 
where  Miss  Lillian  Travers  gets  one  of  the  shocks 
of  her  life. 


CHAPTER    II. 

THE  PEEPING  EVE  OF  THE  PONCE  DE  LEON. 

THE  young  ladies  are  between  the  two  great 
hotels  of  St.  Augustine — the  Cordova,  with  its 
Moorish  windows,  square  turrets  and  narrow  arches, 
and  the  Ponce  de  Leon,  whose  Spanish-domed 
towers  and  sloping  tiled  roofs  in  the  architecture 
of  Seville  or  Valencia  are  embowered  in  its  gardens 
of  orange  and  palm  and  flowering  shrubs.  Imme 
diately  facing  them  is  the  square  of  the  Alcazar 
writh  its  ceaseless  fountain  and  tropical  plants  ;  be 
yond,  the  Villa  Zorayda  looking  like  some  Grana- 
dan  villa  from  which  the  Emirs  of  the  Moorish 
Kingdom  issued  five  hundred  years  ago  to  sack 
Andalusian  villages  and  carry  off  the  maids  of  fair 
Castile  to  Eastern  harems. 

Through  this  scene  of  the  Old  World  passes  the 
Alameda  which  is  all  of  the  modern  ;  its  asphalt 
pavement,  covered  with  prancing  steeds  and  liveried 
equipages ;  its  stone  sidewalks  peopled  with  bril 
liantly  dressed  men  and  women  displaying  the 
toilets  of  Paris  and  New  York. 

Arch  this  scene  with  a  bright  blue  sky,  without  a 
single  cloud  ;  light  it  up  by  a  tropic  sun,  temper  its 
heat  by  a  sea-breeze  that  gently  moves  and  rustles 


A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT.  IQ 

the  foliage  of  the  luxuriant  vegetation  ;  brighten 
this  all  with  lovely  American  women — make  it 
musical  by  the  light  laughter  of  people  who  live 
but  for  pleasure,  mingled  with  the  soft  melodies  of 
a  brilliant  band  playing  one  of  Verdi's  love  songs, 
and  you  have  what  the  two  young  ladies  look  upon 
this  morning  in  St.  Augustine, — this  old  town  of  the 
Spanish  conquistadores,  now  rebuilt  and  revivified 
by  a  modern  conqueror  of  finance  and  oil. 

After  a  short  pause  of  contemplative  enjoyment, 
Miss  Bessie,  to  whom  the  scene  is  much  more 
familiar  than  to  Miss  Travers,  hurries  her  com 
panion  along,  stopping  occasionally  to  greet  a  pass 
ing  friend,  Lilly  also  recognizing  one  or  two  Northern 
visitors. 

A  moment  after  Miss  Bessie  says :  "  Oh  my ! 
Here's  papa." 

And  Miss  Travers  finds  herself  warmly  greeted 
by  an  old-time  Southern  gentleman  of  semi-military 
manner  and  semi-planter  dress  ; — for  Major  Calhoun 
Benham  Horton  prides  himself  upon  always  remem 
bering  that  he  once  held  a  commission  in  the  Con 
federate  Army  signed  by  Jefferson  Davis.  He  bows 
to  the  young  lady  with  punctilious  politeness  and 
welcomes  her  to  St.  Augustine  and  Southern  hospi 
tality  with  the  grace  of  a  modern  Bayard. 

"  Egad  !  "  he  remarks  ;  "  Miss  Lillian,  those  North 
ern  roses  on  your  cheeks  look  so  charming,  that  if 
I  were — ahem  ! — slightly  younger,  I  should  certainly 
think  of  giving  Bess  a  stepmother." 

At  this  Miss  Bessie  gives  a  little  pout  and  mut 
ters—  "  You'd  better  not— not  even  Lilly!"  Then 
wishing  to  turn  the  conversation — for  Miss  Horton 


20  A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT. 

lives  in  horror  of  her  father  in  his  gallantry  to  the 
fair  sex  giving  her  a  stepmother  to  rule  her — she 
says:  "  Have  you  seen  Mr.  Remington  ?  He's  just 
come  ashore  from  his  steam  yacht." 

"  No.  Is  Remington  here?"  asks  the  major,  hur 
riedly.  Then  he  continues :  "  I  must  see  him  at 
once.  Those  phosphate  lands  he  wrote  me  about 
are  almost  disposed  of  to  an  English  company,  and 
if  he  does  not  move  in  a  hurry,  Johnny  Bull  will  for 
once  in  his  life  get  ahead  of  the  Yankees." 

"  Mr.  Remington  is  probably  in  the  Ponce,"  re 
marks  Miss  Travers ;  and  the  three  stroll  into  the 
court-yard  of  that  beautiful  building,  where  the 
major  cries  out  sans  ce'rfanonie  to  a  dark-colored 
gentleman  in  gorgeous  yellow  livery,  knee  breeches 
and  silk  stockings,  "  Here,  boy,  chairs  for  the 
ladies  !  " — and  darts  for  the  office,  or  the  billiard- 
room,  or  the  bar,  or  some  other  place  usually  fre 
quented  by  masculine  humanity,  in  search  of  the 
Northern  capitalist.  A  moment  after  the  two  girls 
are  provided  with  camp-stools,  Miss  Travers'  quarter 
of  a  dollar  soothing  the  colored  servant's  vanity  that 
has  been  deeply  wounded  by  the  major's  "  Boy  !  " 
Then  they  listen  to  the  music  of  the  band  from  the 
loggia,  and  look  over  the  lovely  garden  with  its 
gushing  fountain — hemmed  in  on  all  sides  by  these 
modern  buildings  of  old-fashioned  Spanish  archi 
tecture,  making  it  look  like  \\\z  patio  of  some  great 
Chilean  house  or  Mexican  hacienda. 

The  soft  Southern  air  and  dreamy  melodies  bring 
contemplation  to  Miss  Travers.  She  sits  looking 
at  the  little  ebony  box  which  the  locksmith  has 
done  up  in  paper,  as  it  lies  on  her  lap,  and  indulges 


A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT.  21 

in  a  few  minutes  of  brown  study.  Miss  Bessie  has 
probably  less  on  her  mind,  and  keeps  her  bright  eyes 
pretty  well  occupied  noting  robes  and  millinery; 
directing,  however,  a  few  veiled  glances  at  such  of 
the  masculine  portion  of  the  assemblage,  as  find 
favor  in  her  sight — there  being  plenty  of  men  to 
choose  from  scattered  about  in  costumes  varying 
between  the  bright  flannels  of  the  tennis-court  and 
the  sombre  black  broadcloth  of  gentlemen  from  the 
prairies. 

After  a  few  minutes  of  this,  Miss  Travers  is  sud 
denly  roused  by  Bessie's  hand  upon  her  arm  and 
Bessie's  whisper  in  her  ear,  "  Hush.  Don't  look  up 
too  quickly — don't  appear  to  notice  her — but  see. 
that  girl  on  the  veranda  of  the  second  story  of  the 
hotel.  I  have  been  watching  her  for  five  minutes, 
and  her  face  has  expressed  love,  hatred,  jealousy, 
despair, — and  she's  just  lovely  in  all  of  them." 

"  Who  is  she? — Ah!"  ejaculates  Miss  Travers. 
For  her  eyes  are  resting  upon  a  very  beautiful  girl, 
who,  partly  screened  from  observation  by  the  heavy 
columns  of  the  Spanish  arches  of  the  balcony  that 
faces  the  court-yard,  on  the  main  building  of  the 
Ponce  de  Leon,  is  glancing  diagonally  across  the 
garden  into  one  of  the  open  windows  of  the  left 
wing  of  the  building. 

"  See,"  whispers  Bessie.  "  A  moment  before,  her 
eyes  had  love  in  them  ;  now  they  have  despair. 
What  a  gallant  he  must  be  to  agitate  her  so  ! " 

"  He— who  ?  " 

"  The  man  she  is  looking  at,  of  course  !  "  cries 
Bessie. 

For  at  this  moment  the  young  lady  they  are  dis- 


22  A  FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT. 

cussing  leans  against  the  pillar  of  the  veranda  as  if 
overcome  by  some  cruel  emotion. 

"  I  wonder  who  she  is,"  babbles  Bessie.  "  She 
must  be  awfully  in  love  with  him." 

"  In  love  with  him  !  " 

"  Yes  ;  of  course — the  gentleman  that  girl  adores — 
Suppose  we  run  up  to  that  balcony  and  take  a  peep 
ourselves." 

"  Do  you  think  it  would  be  precisely  fair  ?  "  re 
marks  Miss  Travers. 

"  Yes — if  he's  handsome  !    Come  on  !    You  know 

I  cannot  go  alone,  but  together  we  can  wander  up 

nonchalantly   and   carelessly.     He  must  be  a  lovely 

^fellow,  to  produce  such  potent  emotions.     Quick,  or 

it  will  be  over." 

Thus  adjured,  after  a  careless  refusal  or  two, 
Miss  Lilly,  who  is  a  woman  and  also  curious,  follows 
Bessie  into  the  hotel,  and  a  few  minutes  after  they  are 
on  the  balcony,  chatting  in  apparent  carelessness. 

The  rustle  of  their  dresses — perhaps  the  sound  of 
their  voices — reaches  the  object  of  their  solicitude, 
who  has  been  gazing  intently  upon  a  little  Moorish 
balcony  that  communicates  with  one  of  the  suites 
of  apartments  in  the  right  wing  of  the  building. 
The  moment  she  sees  them,  her  face  by  a  mighty 
effort  becomes  placid,  calm — perhaps  even  careless  ; 
and  a  second  or  two  after  she  saunters  off  the 
veranda  into  the  rotunda,  humming  in  apparent 
nonchalance  the  air  the  band  is  playing. 

"  A  wonderful  actress,"  whispers  Bess  enthusiasti 
cally.  "  Perhaps  she  may  be  a  real  one.  Now,  let 
us  see  this  Romeo  who  was  the  cause  of  her  passion, 
jealousy  and  despair." 


A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT.  23 

The  next  instant  she  is  standing  in  the  young 
lady's  place  gazing  upon  the  same  veranda,  and 
beside  her  is  Lillian  Travers  with  passion,  jealousy 
and  despair  also  in  her  heart,  leaning  against  the 
selfsame  column  and  uttering  the  same  sad  despair 
ing  sighs  of  the  former  watcher. 

Fortunately  Bessie  is  too  occupied  to  notice  her 
companion's  agitation.  "  Isn't  he  lovely,"  she 
ejaculates  ;  "  and  isn't  she  a  stunner  ?  "  For  upon  the 
little  balcony  to  which  she  devotes  her  attention, 
is  seated  a  beautiful  woman  opposite  a  very  hand 
some  man. 

The  lady  is  perhaps  five  and  twenty  and  looks  her 
age,  but  no  more.  As  the  graceful  yet  mature  devel 
opments  of  her  figure  are  outlined  by  the  clinging 
yet  flowing  drapery  of  a  beautiful  semi-tropical 
morning  toilet,  they  seem  perfection  in  their  careless 
pose  and  languid  ease.  One  pretty  foot  in  light, 
silken  hose,  and  dainty  slipper  is  tapping  nervously 
the  veranda.  One  white  hand  ornamented,  not 
covered,  with  rings  and  bracelets  is  resting  pensively 
upon  the  arm  of  the  chair  in  which  she  lounges.  The 
other,  which  cannot  be  seen,  may  be — probably  is — 
in  the  grasp  of  the  gentleman  seated  beside  her. 
Her  eyes,  which  are  of  a  bfilliant,  metallic  steel 
blue,  are  glancing  vivaciously  at  him,  and  her  rosy 
lips,  parted  in  smiles,  show  the  white  pearls  between 
them  as  she  apparently  utters  a  word  or  two  to  the 
cavalier  beside  her. 

He,  however,  is  doing  most  of  the  talking — 
undoubtedly  earnestly,  probably  passionately  ;  his 
gestures  being  those  of  devotion  and  persuasion, 
and  his  eyes  having  in  them  a  reckless  fire.  He  is 


24  A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT. 

nearly  six  feet  tall,  of  slight  yet  handsome  propor 
tions,  and  has  a  kind  of  off-hand  insouciance  in  his 
attitude,  as  if  he  felt  he  had  his  battle  well  in  hand. 
His  forehead  is  high  and  would  be  noble  were  it  not 
contradicted  by  his  other  features ;  for  his  eyes, 
though  beautiful,  are  careless,  reckless,  insincere  ; 
his  nose,  though  dominating,  is  not  delicate,  and  his 
handsome  mouth,  under  his  long  drooping  mustache 
shows  passion  rather  than  love  ;  a  face  that  would 
scarcely  be  true  to  wife,  maid  or  widow — certainly 
not  to  wife.  His  figure  and  bearing  are  of  that 
manly  recklessness,  jovial  good  humor  and  dashing, 
devil-may-care  coolness — perhaps  impudence — that 
makes  deadly  war  upon  female  hearts> — the  face  of  an 
Adam  whom  Eves  will  love  and  run  after  for  all  time, 
and  who  for  all  time  will  betray  his  despairing  Eves. 

"  Isn't  Fred  lovely,"  cries  Bess,  after  drinking  in 
this  scene  with  open  eyes.  "  You'll  meet  him  at  the 
hop  to-morrow  night,  Dr.  Frederick  Cassadene. 
Isn't  he  beautiful !  Why  don't  you  answer  me  ? 
Are  you  so  love-struck  that  you've  lost  your  voice  ?  " 
and  she  turns  round,  but  to  her  astonishment  dis 
covers  that  she  is  alone ;  that  Lillian  Travers  has 
silently  deserted  her.  At  this  she  muses  to  herself : 
"  I  wonder  what  is  fhe  matter  with  Lilly ;  "  then 
gives  a  sort  of  stifled,  frightened  gasp :  "  Can  she  be 
smitten  like  that  other  girl  ?  "  and  so  meditatively 
finds  her  way  to  the  court-yard  below,  with  its 
laughing  crowd,  dreamy  music,  bright  sun  and 
happy  faces. 

But  nowhere  can  she  find  her  companion  of  the 
morning,  for  Lillian  Travers,  staggering  and  stunned 
with  misery,  has  faltered  through  the  palm-swept 


A  FLORIDA  ENCHANTMENT.  25 

alleys  of  the  Ponce  de  Leon  and  crossed  the  crowded 
Alameda  into  the  more  lonely  plaza  of  the  Alcazar, 
where  only  the  hum  of  voices  from  the  crowd  comes 
floating  to  her.  The  music  of  the  distant  band 
seems  a  requiem  of  hopes  never  to  be  realized — of 
love  that  perchance  has  passed  away, — and  she  sinks 
on  a  bench  screened  by  a  spreading  oleander,  where 
the  splashing  fountain  murmurs  in  her  ears  the 
despairing  refrain  :  "  He  whom  I  loved  and  trusted 
—who  was  to  have  been  my  husband — has  forgotten 
me!" 

She  writhes  under  this  thought,  and  mutters — 
"  Fred — Fred — Fred  ! "  as  if  to  call  her  careless 
lover  back  to  her."  Then  pride  comes  to  her,  and 
self-esteem  tells  her  that  if  Mrs.  Stella  Lovejoy, 
whom  she  has  easily  recognized  as  a  New  York 
acquaintance  of  hers,  is  a  rich  and  beautiful  widow, 
she  Lillian  Travers  is  a  rich  and  beautiful  girl — and 
she  says  reassuringly  to  herself  :  "  Of  course,  it  was 
a  professional  call — I  should  remember  my  fiance 
is  a  doctor. — A  woman  who  gives  her  heart  should 
give  her  faith." — Next  she  cries  out  in  feminine  logic, 
"  Who  was  that  horrid  jealous  girl  who  was  spying 
upon  him  ? — I'll — I'll  make  Fred  give  me  a  satis 
factory  explanation  as  to  her — I'll — He  must  have 
got  my  note  by  this  time,  he  must  know  I'm  in  St. 
Augustine. — He'll  be  at  my  aunt's  this  afternoon 
I  must  hurry  home  and  dress — I'll  try  and  show 
him  I'm  not  jealous — jealousy  seems  despicable  in 
a  man's  eyes. — There  was  no  man  gazing  in  agony 
from  that  veranda  at  Stella  Lovejoy,— then  says 
desperately,  "Oh,  if  I  could  love  like  a  man  !"  rising 
from  her  seat  to  go  in  search  of  Bessie. 


26  A  FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT. 

But  turning  her  eyes  toward  the  Ponce  de  Leon 
she  catches  sight  of  that  young  lady  deeply  engaged 
with  Mr.  Wilkes, -and  this  gives  her  mind  another 
wrench — "Even  that  creature,"  she  thinks  contempt 
uously,  for  Wilkes  is  not  a  noble  looking  biped,  "is 
a  man,  and  has  forgotten  Mrs.  Lovejoy  in  Bess's 
bright  eyes.  And  yet  Remington  said  he  had  been 
cut  out  of  the  beautiful  widow's  affections  by  a 
doctor." — Here  her  heart  gives  a  throb  of  agony 
and  she  cries  savagely,  "What  doctor? — My  doctor 
Fred  ? — if  it  should  be—  "  and  clinches  her  pretty 
fist — then  sniffs  at  the  fountain  and  mutters,  "  What 
horrid  sulphur  water  ! — This  place  is  not  healthy  !  " 
and  almost  tottering  to  the  Alameda  calls  a  carriage 
and  gasps,  "  Miss  Oglethorpe's  place — Sunny  Grove 
—Quick!" 

So,  getting  in,  she  is  driven  to  her  aunt's  home 
in  so  gloomy,  meditative  and  sighing  a  mood  that 
she  entirely  forgets  the  box  that  lies  carelessly 
upon  her  lap.  An  abstraction^  that  does  not  argue 
well  for  Doctor  Fred  when  he  makes  his  afternoon 
call  upon  his  pretty  fiance"  e  ;  as  Miss  Lillian  Travers 
had  but  an  hour  ago  a  very  lively  curiosity  as  to  its 
contents. 


CHAPTER    III. 

THE    WIDOW'S   FLUTTERING   PULSE. 

HER  indifference  to  the  object  lying  in  her  lap  is 
not  surprising ;  for  Lillian  Travers  is  running  over 
in  her  mind  the  events  of  the  last  six  months.  The 


A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT.  2? 

orphan  daughter  of  a  New  York  banker,  she  has 
no  near  relatives,  save  the  lady  to  whose  house  she 
is  driving,  and  though  her  own  mistress  has  not 
been,  until  the  last  few  days,  the  mistress  of  her 
own  fortune  ;  for  her  father,  having  a  mortal  dread 
of  his  beautiful  child's  wealth  making  her  the  prey 
of  some  matrimonial  fortune-hunter,  had  provided 
in  his  will  that  all  his  property,  both  real  and  per 
sonal,  should  remain  in  trust  for  his  daughter  and 
her  descendants,  only  the  income  from  it  to  be 
used  for  their  support  and  maintenance. 

If,  however,  Miss  Travers  remained  unwed  until 
her  twenty-fifth  year,  the  property  should  then  pass 
into  her  sole  possession  and  unlimited  control ;  the 
testator  apparently  thinking  that  Lillian's  wisdom 
at  that  age  would  protect  her  from  an  unwise  mar 
riage. 

This  provision  had  for  some  time  after  her 
father's  death  apparently  been  unnecessary,  Miss 
Travers'  heart  being  invincible  to  masculine  ad 
vances  ;  until  the  preceding  summer,  chancing  to 
spend  a  few  days  at  the  Grand  Union,  Saratoga,  she 
had  met  Dr.  Frederick  Cassadene,  who  was  acting 
as  the  physician  at  that  celebrated  hotel. 

Called  in  to  see  her  professionally,  to  treat  some 
passing  ailment,  his  prescriptions  had  been  beneficial 
to  her  health,  but  his  charms  of  manner  and  con 
versation  had  been  fatal  to  her  heart.  It  was  a  case 
of  love  at  first  sight  on  her  side — probably  on  his; 
for  this  medical  gentleman's  attachments  to  pretty 
women  were  not  so  permanent  as  ardent. 

Under  these  circumstances  Lilly's  visit  to  Sara 
toga  had  been  extended  to  the  end  of  the  season, 


28  A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT. 

and  when  she  left  that  watering  place,  Doctor  Fred's 
engagement  ring  sparkled  on  her  white  hand. 

During  the  first  of  the  winter  the  Doctor  had  fol 
lowed  her  to  New  York  and  pressed  her  for  an  early 
marriage,  stating  very  candidly  that  his  means  were 
only  the  uncertain  income  derived  from  a  practice 
in  Saratoga  during  the  summer  months,  and  an 
equally  precarious  attendance  upon  invalids  in  St. 
Augustine  during  the  winter  exodus  of  Northern 
tourists  to  that  celebrated  resort.  This  expos£  of 
his  financial  inequality  with  the  New  York  heiress 
had  been  made  with  seeming  ingenuousness  but 
with  great  ingenuity  ;  for  Doctor  Cassadene  knew 
that  Lillian  loved  him  well  enough  to  take  him, 
rich  or  poor,  and  be  only  happy  that  her  wealth 
could  add  to  the  prosperity  of  the  man  she 
adored. 

At  his  request  Miss  Travers  had  immediately  in 
formed  him  of  the  peculiarity  of  her  father's  will, 
and  had  been  delighted  at  the  generosity  of  his 
reply ;  for  he  had  implored  her  to  marry  him  imme 
diately,  saying  that  he  loved  her  too  well  to  post 
pone  the  happiness  of  being  her  husband  for  the 
pleasure  of  being  rich.  - 

She  loved  him  more  than  ever  as  she  answered, 
"  Had  we  not  better  wait  until  I  am  twenty-five  ? 
— then  I  can  lavish  upon  you  the  principal,  not  the 
interest,  of  my  fortune,  Fred." 

"  Fancy  the  horror  of  waiting  four  years  ! "  he 
had  muttered.  Whereupon  she  had  given  him  a 
roguish  smile  and  remarked  demurely,  "  Perhaps 
the  four  years  will  run  around  sooner  than  you 
think.  Wait  until  next  spring  ;  then  if  you  wish 


A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT.  29 

to  marry  me  immediately,  you  may  have  my  hand 
as  you  have  my  heart  now." 

A  few  days  after  this  promise,  the  Doctor  had 
departed  for  St.  Augustine,  carrying  the  kisses  of 
his  beautiful  fiancee  upon  his  lips,  and  two  months 
later,  Lilly  Travers  had  suddenly  taken  the — 
"  Florida  Special  "  to  visit  her  aunt,  following  the 
man  she  loved,  with  a  great  gladness  in  her  heart 
and  a  rapturous  surprise  for  him  in  her  mind. 

Perhaps  it  is  this  that  causes  her  to  murmur  as 
she  drives  up  the  pretty  avenue  of  orange  trees, 
"  Fred,  if  you  knew  the  revelation  I  have  in  store 
for  you,  the  confession  I  have  to  make  to  you — you 
would  be  waiting  for  me  on  that  porch — now  !  " 

As  she  says  this,  she  steps  out  of  the  carriage  and 
is  welcomed  by  her  aunt,  Miss  Constantia  Ogle- 
thorpe,  with  the  soft  words  and  tender  kisses  an  old 
lady  gives  to  a  young  one  who  is  very  near  her 
heart.  They  sit  down  to  lunch  and  Miss  Connie 
remarks,  "  You  did  not  eat  anything  for  breakfast, 
Lil,  and  have  no  appetite  now — perhaps  this  letter 
may  improve  it," — and  smilingly  produces  a  little 
note  that  Lilly,  clutching  with  a  cry  of  joy,  tears 
quickly  open. 

With  hasty  perusal  comes  sunshine  and  content. 

She  says  :  "  Auntie,  he  is  coming  this  afternoon  at 
three.  He  reproaches  me  for  not  telegraphing  him. 
Then  he  could  have  met  me  at  the  train." 

"Ah!"  replies  Miss  Constantia;  "then  I  shall 
soon  see  the  Doctor  Fred  of  your  letters,  Lilly. 
Bessie  Horton  knows  him  slightly  and  says  he's 
very  handsome — and  you  told  me  the  same,  I  be 
lieve,  last  night." — Here  the  aunt  gives  a  roguish 


3O  A  FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT. 

glance  at  the  niece,  for  these  two  are  great  chums 
and  confidants,  and  Miss  Connie  has  had  Lilly's 
secret  in  her  keeping  almost  from  the  time  it  was  a 
secret. 

A  moment  after,  Lilly  cries  impulsively:  "And 
to  think  that  I  doubted  " — she  checks  herself. 

"  To  think  that  you  doubted  what  ?  " 

"  Oh,  nothing,"  says  the  girl,  reddening;  then 
remarks  suddenly,  as  if  to  turn  the  conversation, 
"  Aunt  Connie,  tell  me  the  story  of  tfiat  old  ebony 
casket — the  little  one  in  your  parlor — the  family 
heirloom. — It  has  a  romantic  history,  has  it  not  ?  " 

To  which  Miss  Constantia  replies :  "  There  is 
nothing  peculiar  connected  with  ?&?/ casket,  though 
I  believe  there  is  a  very  extraordinary  story  linked 
with  the  other  one !  " 

"  The  other  casket !     What  other  casket  ?  " 

"  Why,  there  was  once  a  duplicate  of  the  one  in 
the  parlor,"  replies  Miss  Connie,  smiling  at  her 
niece's  eagerness.  "  Both  of  them  belonged  to  my 
grandfather,  old  Captain  Hauser  Oglethorpe." 

"  Ah !  the  great  sea-dog  of  our  family,  the  one 
whose  picture  I  am  looking  at,"  says  Lilly,  glancing 
at  the  portrait  of  a  bronzed  and  wind-battered  tar 
whose  wicked  face  seems  to  leer  into  hers  from  a 
gilt  frame  on  the  opposite  wall  of  the  dining  room. — 
She  can't  stand  the  gaze  of  this  man  on  canvas,  and 
her  drooping  eyes  fall  upon  the  little  bundle  she  has 
brought  home  with  her,  which  is  standing  upon  the 
side-board. 

"  Yes,"  continues  her  aunt,  who,  like  most  old 
ladies,  is  always  eager  to  tell  a  story  of  the  past. 
"  During  the  war  of  1812,  when  my  grandfather  and 


A  FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT.  3! 

your  great-grandfather  returned  from  a  voyage  to 
Africa,  where  I  believe,  my  dear" — here  she 
laughs  a  little — "  he  had  been  for  a  cargo  of  slaves, 
though  that  is  omitted  in  the  family  annals,  he  was 
pursued  by  a  British  sloop-of-war,  the  Falcon,  and 
his  vessel,  the  Firefly,  was  wrecked  about  a  mile  or 
two  below  the  lighthouse  over  there" — she  points 
to  the  one  that  towers  above  Anastasia  Island. 

"  A  mile  or  two  below  the  lighthouse  over  there," 
exclaims  Lilly  with  an  excited  start,  the  boy's  re 
marks  at  Vedder's  in  regard  to  her  purchase  flying 
into  her  mind. 

"  Yes,"  continues  Miss  Constantia,  unheeding  the 
interruption  ;  "  his  sufferings  during  the  shipwreck 
and  gale  were  such  that  his  mind  was  shattered. 
As  a  child  I  can  remember  old  Grandpa  Hauser,  and 
he  was  then  a  gibbering  idiot,  in  his  dotage  and 
nearly  ninety  years  of  age.  He  was  always  crying 
and  pointing  to  that  island,  and  saying  that  in  the 
other  casket,  lost  forever  beneath  the  ocean,  was 
what  would  make  him  very  rich  and  some  woman 
very  happy." 

"  Some  woman  very  happy  !  "  ejaculates  Lillian. 
"  Why,  all  women  are  happy — any  woman  that  is  in 
love — any  woman  who  is  loved." 

"  Ah  !  you  are  certain  of  that,  my  dear  ?  "  remarks 
her  aunt,  a  sad  light  of  the  past  coming  into  her 
eyes.  "  Don't  be  too  sure.  The  poor  old  imbecile 
had  some  curious  ideas,  however,  for  he  said  *  it 
would  make  that  woman  a  man  ' !  " 

"  Make  the  woman  a  MAN  !  What  an  absurd 
idea!  "  And  Miss  Lilly  giggles  merrily. 

"  Yes,  it   is  an  atrocious  thought — one  in  which 


32  A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT. 

only  a  strong-minded  woman  would  indulge,"  says 
Constantia  sternly. 

"  I  wonder  how  I  would  look  as  a  boy,"  cries  her 
niece,  rising  and  strutting  about ;  for  Fred's  letter 
has  made  her  vivaciously  happy. 

"  Dumpy,"  remarks  Connie  sententiously. 

"  Dumpy  !  I — dumpy?  Why,  I  am  quite  tall — 
five  feet  six  and  one-half  inches." 

"That  is  very  well  for  a  girl,"  replies  Constantia, 
"but  I'll  warrant  you  would  not  think  Doctor  Fred 
tall  with  that  number  of  feet  .and  inches." 

This  puts  another  idea  into  the  young  lady's  head 
and  she  mutters  to  herself,  "  Then,  if  I  were  a  man, 
I  could  not  love  a  man, — I  could  not  love  Fred. 
Awful !  "  Next  she  gives  a  playful  little  shudder, 
glances  at  her  watch  and  exclaims,  "  Half-past  two. 
I  must  run  up  and  dress  for  him.  Doctor  Fred 
does  not  like  to  be  kept  waiting.  Physicians  love  a 
punctual  patient." 

"  Or  sweetheart,"  suggests  Constantia. 

This  is  drowned  by  Lilly's  joyous  laugh  as  she 
runs  up  to  her  room,  and  cries  to  her  mulatto  maid, 
"  Jane — you've  only  twenty-five  minutes  to  make  me 
good-looking,"  forgetting,  in  her  anxiety  to  achieve 
an  effective  toilet,  the  purchase  that  had  occupied 
so  much  of  her  thoughts  during  the  early  morning. 

"  Bless  yo  heart,  yo's  a  Venus  already.  What 
more  dos  yo  want — I  knows  what's  de  matter  wid 
yo.  Doc  Fred's  coming,  Honey — I  felt  jus'  the 
same  when  my  Gus  was  here  last  night  " — says  her 
saffron-hued  attendant  who  is  very  dpris  with  a  col 
ored  gentleman  of  Sixth  Avenue,  New  York,  who  is 
at  present  acting  as  the  second  waiter  of  the  Ponce 


A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT.  33 

--^ 

de    Leon    and    one    of    the    glories    of    its    dining 
room. 

"  Nevertheless  Venus  will  indulge  in  a  new 
dress  !  "  replies  Lilly  and  places  herself  under  Jane's 
deft  hands  with  such  good  results  that  when  half 
an  hour  afterwards  Dr.  Fred  Cassadenc  springs  from 
a  carriage  and  enters  Miss  Connie's  parlor  he  thinks 
he  does  see  a  Venus,  and  ejaculates  to  himself— 
"Great  Powers!  I'd  forgotten  how  lovely  Lilly 
was  !  "  In  truth  Lilly  T ravers  might  cause  rapture 
to  any  masculine  heart  as  she  floats  towards  him, 
some  bright  shimmering  gauzy  dress  clinging  to  and 
draping  her  graceful  figure,  a  love  light  in  her  young 
eyes  and  tender  kisses  on  her  rosy  lips. 

Over  this  beautiful  vision  the  reckless  young  doc 
tor  goes  into  a  lover's  transport,  forgetting  that  a 
beautiful  patient  is  impatiently  awaiting  another 
professional  visit  from  him  at  the  Ponce  de  Leon 
Hotel.  For  Fred.  Cassadene  generally  loved  best  in 
his  careless  way  the  woman  whose  eyes  he  was 
gazing  into.  After  a  few  minutes  of  mutual  rapture, 
the  conversation  passes  from  the  romantic  to  the 
every-day  concerns  of  life,  that  affect  lovers  as  well 
as  other  people.  Then,  this  gentleman,  who  has 
learned  to  read  a  woman's  mind  much  more  ac 
curately  than  he  diagnoses  a  patient's  disease,  noting 
that  his  sweetheart's  manner  is  a  trifle  embarrassed, 
thinks  to  himself,  "  If  she  suspects  I'll  set  myself 
right  before  she  opens  the  battle,"  and  cries  lightly : 
"  Ha  ha!  you've  a  secret,  Lilly." 

"  Yes  ;  two,"  says  the  girl,  emphasizing  this  re 
mark  with  both  a  pout  and  a  blush,  as  if  one  were 
pleasant  and  the  other  not  so  agreeable  to  her. 


34  A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT. 

"  Humph  !  you'll  tell  'em  to  me  of  course.  No 
secrets  from  your  loving  Fred — who  has  none  from 
you."  And  Mr.  Assurance  looks  severely  upon  Miss 
Innocence  who  blushes  nervously. 

"  Then  let  us  go  into  the  garden !  "  mutters  Lilly. 
"  I  don't  want  to  be  at  home  to  anybody  but  you, 
Fred,  on  this  our  first  meeting  for  nearly  two  long 
months  !  " 

"  Yes — it  did  seem  an  awful  time  to  me  here  in  St. 
Augustine,"  returns  the  gentleman  as  he  follows  her 
into  one  of  the  orange  alleys  that  leads  to  a  summer 
house  overlooking  the  blue  waves  of  Matanzas  Inlet 
— "  But  for  you  in  gay  New  York,  the  balls,  parties, 
opera — Eh,  naughty  Lilly  !  "  and  he  makes  his  sweet 
heart  happy  by  giving  the  pink  shell  she  calls  her 
ear  a  dainty  pinch. 

"  Pooh  !  I  didn't  go  to  any  !  Not  a  function  this 
season,"  whispers  the  girl  with  a  blush.  "  You 
would  not  have  been  there — and  I. was  unhappy  as  I 
thought  of  you  in  lonely  St.  Augustine." 

"  Of  course — very  lonely  St.  Augustine  ;  there 
were  few  visitors  here  until  the  last  week,  but 
then—  "  here  Fred  checks  himself  suddenly. 

"  But  for  the  last  week  you've  done  pretty  well," 
laughs  Lilly.  Then  she  says  sadly,  perhaps  point 
edly :  "  The  Gadabout  arrived  here  a  week  ago?" 
and  gives  a  little  sigh. 

"  Oh— ah  !  That's  where  the  land  lies,"  thinks  this 
medical  Machiavelli  and  remarks,  "  Yes,  that  yacht 
brought  me  a  patient — a  friend  of  yours:  Mrs.  Love- 
joy  " — and  hoping  to  carry  the  war  into  Africa  con 
tinues  rapidly:  "  But  your  secrets,  ma  belle? — You 
needn't  fear  confession — you  have  a  mercifuLjudge — 


A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT.  35 

your  beauty  shall  plead  in  mitigation  of  your  follies. 
You've  been  indulging  in  a  little  flirtation — eh  ?  " 

At  this  his  sweetheart  cries,  "  Oh,  Fred — for 
shame  !  "  in  indignant  tones  and  wounded  voice — and 
with  flashing  eyes,  confronts  him — hitting  him  harder 
than  she  guesses  as  she  says,  "  Do  you  think  so 
meanly  of  me  as  to  suppose  I  could  flirt  with  any 
man  with  your  engagement  ring  upon  my  ringer?" 
and  flashes  the  diamond  in  his  face  to  make  him 
ashamed  of  himself — for  a  moment — his  impulses 
good  or  bad  seldom  last  longer. 

He  cries  quickly,  "  Forgive  me — don't  cry  and 
break  my  heart " — for  tears  of  wounded  pride  are  in 
the  girl's  eyes,"  then  utters  impetuously,  "  Don't 
cry,  and  I'll  never  make  you  weep  again ! "  and 
means  every  word  he  says  as  he  looks  at  his  beauti 
ful  sweetheart. 

"Very  well,"  she  whispers,  glowing  under  his 
attentions. 

"  You  forgive  me  ?" 

"  Of  course — I  could  forgive  you  much  more  than 
that !  I  have  forgiven  much  more  to-day !  " 

"  To-day — how  have  I  offended  ?  "  He  looks 
carelessly  innocent  as  he  puts  the  question. 

"  Ask  your  own  heart  ?  " 

"  My  heart  tells  me  nothing  but  that  I  love 
you!" 

"  You  are  sure  ?  " 

"  Sure  as  that  I  love  you  !  " 

"  Then  you  have  something  to  forgive  me," 
whispers  Lilly,  made  radiant  by  his  declaration,  and 
she  tells  him  the  incident  she  had  witnessed  in  the 
morning  at  the  Ponce  de  Leon.  Next,  being  very 


36  A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT. 

happy  to  get  the  thing  off  her  mind  she  laughs, 
"  And  I  was  so  jealous,  Fred." 

This  gives  her  lover  an  opening. 

He  suddenly  thinks  any  jealous  tendency  in  his 
sweetheart  must  be  crushed  or  he  will  have  an  un 
comfortable  time  between  his  beautiful  fiancee  and 
the  lovely  widow.  With  this  idea  in  his  head  he 
says,  "Jealous,  Lilly!"  in  a  wounded  tone  that 
makes  her  start,  and  then  pronounces  judicially  the 
following  oration  :  "  You  must  learn  not  to  be  jeal 
ous,  you  must  understand  that  a  medical  man  has 
certain  duties. — I  presume  after  we  are  married  you 
will  be  uneasy  if  I  go  to  the  club — if  I  stay  out 
late  of  nights  when  my  patients  call  me  away.  But, 
Lilly,  this  will  not  do  for  the  wife  of  a  practising 
physician — you  must  learn  to  control  yourself  as  a 
man  would.  You  must  have  a  man's  faith.  Men 
are  never  jealous." 

At  this  extraordinary  statement  the  girl  gasps, 
"  Men  never  jealous?  " 

"  At  least  very  seldom.  Did  you  see  any  man  on 
that  balcony  at  the  Ponce  gazing  in  anguish  at  Mrs. 
Lovcjoy  ?"  he  asks  with  a  smile.  "  And  yet  I  pre 
sume  some  men  think  her  handsome — one  man  has 
loved  her." 

"  Who  ? "  ejaculates  Lilly  in  sudden  anxiety. 
"  Her  husband  !  "  replies  Fred  in  careless  nonchalance 
— "she's  a  widow,  she  must  have  had  a  husband." 

"  Oh,  Fred  !  How  curiously  you  do  put  things  !  " 
murmurs  Miss  Travers  with  a  sigh  of  relief.  Then 
she  whispers,  a  beautiful  blush  flashing  over  her 
mobile  features  and  a  soft  tender  light  coming  into 
her  eyes,  though  she  turns  them  away  torn  his 


A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT.  3/ 

glance  and  droops  her  head — "  I've  something  else 
to  tell  you,  my  own — something  I  came  all  the  way 
from  New  York  to  tell  you — I've  got  all  my  prop 
erty  ! " 

She  is  interrupted  here  by  an  astounded  "  What  ?  " 
from  the  doctor;  but  continues  excitedly,  "  Yes — all 
— bonds,  securities, "money  in  bank — real  estate!" 
Then  blushes  and  hides  her  head  upon  his  shoulder 
and  whispers,  "  You  remember  what  you  asked  me  in 
New  York.  There's  nothing  to  stop  our —  "  she  goes 
on  desperately,  "  our  marriage  now  !  " 

"  Impossible  !  "  cries  Fred  in  an  astonished  voice, 
for  he  hardly  can  believe  her.  "  Your  father's  will 
said  you  couldn't  come  into  possession  till  you  were 
twenty-five — and  you're  only  twenty-one  and  don't 
look  that." 

But  here  a  greater  surprise  comes  to  him — perhaps 
a  shock  ;  his  sweetheart  gives  him  a  glance  of  femi 
nine  reproach  and  mutters,  "  Men  can  never  take  a 
hint  !  " 

"A  hint  of  what  ?" 

"  A  hint  of  anything  sensible.  Don't  you  know  a 
girl  never  likes  to  tell  her  full  age  to  her  lover  " — 
cries  Lilly  desperately.  "  Oh,  how  hard  you  make  it ! 
A  week  ago  I  was —  She  cuts  the  awful  sentence 
short  by  hiding  her  face  again  on  the  astounded 
Frederick's  shoulder. 

But  he  finishes  the  sentence  for  her  by  ejaculat 
ing,  "  You — you  were  twenty-five,  by  Jupiter  !  " 

"  Y-e-s ! "  This  is  a  sigh  from  under  his  chin 
where  Lilly's  head  is. 

"  Ah,  now  I  understand,"  he  goes  on  after  a 
second's  pause — "  that  was  the  meaning  of  your 


38  A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT. 

smiles  and  laughter  when  I  groaned  '  Four  years 
was  a  long  time  to  wait ' — when  you  mocked  my 
impatience  by— 

But  she  interrupts  him,  crying,  "  Don't  reproach 
me — I  only  thought  you  would  be  delighted  by  the 

surprise — I " 

"  And  you  deceived  the  man  you  love  ?  " 
And  Fred  would  be  very  stern  with  her,  but  the 
girl  having  gotten  over  her  confession  regains  her 
spirits  and  laughs,  "  That  wasn't  very  difficult — look 
at  me  !  I  don't  appear  more  than  twenty-one ; 
do  I?" 

Then  glancing  at  her  the  doctor  is  appeased.  He 
cries,  "  My  Heaven  !  How  beautiful  you  are — my 
own,  my  promised  wife  ! "  and  seizes  her  to  his 
breast,  as  her  tender  arms  close  round  him  and  she 
pleads  to  him  with  kisses. 

After  a  series  of  confidences  and  raptures,  and 
almost  naming  the  wedding  day,  Cassadene  with 
medical  prudence  and  lover's  care  says — "I  must 
keep  you  from  the  evening  fog — where's  your  wrap, 
Lil? — You  don't  know  our  Florida  evenings  " — then 
looking  at  his  watch  cries,  "  Nearly  six  o'clock, — what 
will  my  patients  think? — I  must  be  going,"  and 
Lilly,  hanging  on  his  arm  as  happy  as  any  girl  the 
sun  is  shining  on,  strolls  towards  the  house. 

"  Won't  you  come  in  and  see  my  aunt  ?  "  suggests 
the  young  lady. 

"  Not  now — what'll  my  patients  do?  " 
"  Of  course  you'll  come  this  evening!  " 
"  Well,  I  shoulcLrather  think  so,"  says  Fred,  with 
a  little  squeeze  which   makes    his   sweetheart  very 
happy. 


A  FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT.  39 

"What  time?" 

"  How  will  eight  do?" 

"So  late?" 

"  Well,  half-past  seven — you'll  have  your  tea  over 
by  that  time." 

"  Yes,  and  something  ready  to  show  you — I'd  for 
gotten  all  about  it — it's  a  curiosity,"  and  she  tells 
him  of  her  purchase  at  Vedder's — then  asks,  "  Are 
you  an  antiquarian  ?  " 

"  I'd  be  anything  to  sit  beside  you,"  cries  Fred.— 
"  No,  your  aunt  can't  see  us  " — for  they  are  at  the 
gate  now,  and  he  is  anxious  for  a  kiss. 

"  There  !  No  more  till  the  evening."  And  with 
a  little  laugh  Lilly  escapes  from  him  and  drawing 
up  her  white  skirts  to  clear  the  plants  covered  with 
evening  dew,  runs  lightly  along  the  path,  making  a 
lovely  but  fleeting  picture  of  floating  robes  and 
twinkling  feet  and  exquisite  ankles  and  blushing 
face  upon  which  her  lover  gazes  with  admiring  eyes 
and  mutters — - 

"  By  Jove  !  how  charming  !  and  mine  too  !  All 
mine — youth,  beauty  and  fortune.  Lucky  boy,  Doc 
tor  Freddie  !  "  Then  whistling  a  merry  air,  he  turns 
his  steps  toward  the  centre  of  St.  Augustine,  for  he 
loves  Lilly  T ravers  very  dearly,  and  is  happy  in  his 
love,  just  at  this  moment. 

A  few  minutes  after,  as  he  passes  the  San  Marco, 
the  lights  of  which  are  already  twinkling  in  the 
dusk  of  the  evening,  Doctor  Fred  thinks  impa 
tiently,  "  By  George !  it's  a  pity  I  had  not  known 
of  Lilly's  coming  into  her  fortune,  before!  This 
complication  with  Mrs.  Lovejoy  may  be  inconven 
ient,  if  she  should  discover  " — he  gives  a  long,  con- 


4O  A  FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT. 

templative  whistle,  but  a  moment  after  mutters  to 
himself :  "  I've  had  two  girls  on  the  string  before — 
I  guess  I  can  handle  this  pair,  even  though  both  are 
heiresses,  and  one  is  a  widow !  "  and  with  this 
steps  briskly  on  to  the  Ponce  de  Leon,  where  his 
servant,  waiting  for  him  in  his  office,  informs  him 
that  Mrs.  Lovejoy  is  very  ill. 

"  How  do  you  know  that?"  he  asks  hastily. 

"  She  has  sent  for  you  three  times  within  the 
hour,  sir." 

"  Oh,  is  that  all?"  he  says,  with  a  relieved  smile, 
and  strides  up  to  the  magnificent  suite  of  apart 
ments  on  the  second  floor,  occupied  by  the  rich 
New  York  widow,  to  find  her  playing  invalid  in  a 
coquettish  tea-gown,  evidently  donned  for  his  con 
quest  and  undoing.  Here  he's  received  with  playful 
words  of  reproach  at  his  professional  neglect,  but 
with  such  alluring  smiles  and  captivating  graces  that 
Fred  Cassadene  very  shortly  forgets  the  physician 
in  the  gallant  and  loses  from  his  capricious  mind 
all  thought  of  the  beautiful  girl  with  whom  he  has 
just  been  discussing  their  wedding  day,  and  thinks 
only  of  the  beautiful  blue  eyes  that  are  gazing  into 
his,  and  the  lovely  pulse  that  he  has  felt  half  a 
dozen  times  to  see  if  it  fluttered,  and  found  it  flut 
tering  every  time.  But,  if  any  one  had  accused  him 
of  treachery  to  his  fiancee,  even  at  this  moment,  he 
would  have  denied  it  indignantly,  for  Fred  Cassa- 
dene's  nature  is  perfectly  irresponsible.  Though 
come  to  man's  estate,  in  matters  of  the  heart  he  is 
still  a  grown-up  boy,  and  has  a  boy's  knack  of  loving 
all  pretty  women — the  one  nearest  to  him,  the  best. 


A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT.  41 

CHAPTER    IV. 

"  FOR   WOMEN   WHO    SUFFER  !  " 

Miss  LILLY  comes  in,  her  face  covered  with 
smiles  of  happy  hope. 

"  Aunt  Connie,"  she  says  playfully,  "  Doctor  Fred 
did  not  have  time  to  be  introduced  to  you  this  after 
noon.  He  had  so  much  to  tell  me." 

"  So  it  seems,"  replies  the  old  lady  grimly,  for  in 
matters  of  etiquette  she  is  as  punctilious  as  a  Span 
ish  grandee  and  thinks  herself  slighted  in  her  future 
nephew-in-law  having  visited  her  house  without 
going  through  the  ceremony  of  presentation  to  its 
mistress. 

11  But  he  will  be  here  again  this  evening,  and  then 
you  will  be  able  to  judge  how  handsome  he  is," 
mutters  Lilly  apologetically. 

"  Oh,  I  have  already  seen  him." 

"  Indeed  ! — Where?  "  queries  the  niece. 

"  Walking  up  the  path  with  you  this  afternoon," 
answers  the  aunt  rather  savagely.  "  Then  I  discov 
ered  I  knew  Doctor  Cassadenc  very  well  by  sight, 
though  not  by  name.  I  recognized  him  as  a  gentle 
man  I  had  often  seen  driving  about  St.  Augustine, 
during  the  last  two  months.  My  attention  had 
been  called  to  him  by  the  beaut—  "  the  old  lady 
checks  herself  suddenly  and  cries,  "  But  come  in  to 
tea,  Lilly,  at  once." 

"  By  the  beautiful  what  ?  "  asks  Miss  Travers 
eagerly. 

"  Which  do  you  like  best,  tea  or  coffee  ?  "  says 
the  aunt,  as  they  seat  themselves  at  the  table. 


42  A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT. 

"  With  whom  did  you  see  Doctor  Fred  driving  ?  " 

"  With  his  patients,  I  presume,"  is  Miss  Connie's 
unsatisfactory  response.  "  Tea  or  coffee?  " 

"  Tea  !  "  replies  Lilly  desperately,  knowing  she 
will  get  no  further  information  until  she  has  informed 
her  relative  on  this  point. 

A  few  minutes  after  she  tries  to  turn  the  conver 
sation  to  the  matter  once  more,  but  to  her  chagrin, 
Constantia  deftly  refuses  the  subject,  apparently 
having  made  up  her  mind  to  discuss  Doctor  Cassa- 
dene  no  further  with  her  niece,  at  present. 

So  the  meal  runs  along,  Lilly  dividing  her  atten 
tion  between  old  Hauser  Oglethorpe's  picture,  which 
still  leers  at  her  from  its  frame,  the  clock  on  the 
mantel-piece,  and  her  purchase,  which  is  yet  on  the 
sideboard,  in  exactly  the  same  state  in  which  she 
has  brought  it  home  from  Vedder's  Museum.  The 
clock,  however,  receives  most  of  her  attention. 

It  is  now  striking  seven,  and  Lilly's  thoughts  are 
turning  to  the  half  hour  when  Doctor  Fred  will  again 
be  by  her  side,  when  a  rap  is  heard  upon  the  hall 
door,  and  one  of  the  servants  answering  it,  ushers 
in  a  messenger  boy,  who  carries  a  magnificent  bunch 
of  roses,  and  a  note,  in  a  well-known  handwriting. 

"  For  me  !  "  cries  Lilly,  seizing  both  note  and  bou 
quet,  at  the  same  moment.  "  Look,  auntie,  lovely 
roses  from  Doctor  Fred  !  Isn't  he  a  darling  boy?" 
and  smells  the  perfumed  buds  in  so  caressing  a 
manner,  that  Miss  Connie  says  significantly,  "  Don't 
mistake  the  gift  for  the  giver  !  " 

But  even  as  she  does  so,  pauses  in  her  laugh,  for 
Lilly,  having  torn  open  the  envelope  and  glanced 
over  the  note,  gives  a  cry  of  disappointment,  then 


A  FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT.  43 

pouts,  and  there  are  tears  in  her  eyes,  for  she  is 
reading  the  following: 

PONCE  DE  LEON  HOTEL. 
ST.  AUGUSTINE,  FLORIDA. 

February  1st,  1891. 
MY  DARLING  LILLY  : 

•  Horror  of  horrors  !  I'm  just  called  to  attend  a  desperate  case 
of  snake-bite,  about  four  miles  from  here,  out  on  the  Tocoi  road. 
I  must  leave  immediately,  as  the  snake  was  a  rattler,  or  moccasin, 
and  every  instant  is  important. 

I  send  with  this  an  invitation  to  the  hop  at  the  Ponce  to 
morrow  evening,  to  which  of  course  I  will  take  you. 

Also  send  a  bunch  of  flowers,  all  my  love  and  ten  thousand  kisses. 

Yours  forever, 

FRED. 

P.  S.     I'll  give  you  the  kisses  in  person  to-morrow,  with  interest. 

"  What  is  the  matter  ?  "  asks  Miss  Connie,  for 
Lilly's  face  is  now  almost  despairing. 

"  This,"  cries  the  girl,  impulsively  holding  the 
letter  before  her  aunt's  eyes.  But  suddenly  with*, 
drawing  it  she  remarks  :  "  I'll  paraphrase  it,  dear 
Connie.  He  is  called  suddenly  away,  to  attend  a 
patient  on  the  Tocoi  road,  who  has  been  bitten  by 
a  snake.  Of  course  he  had  to  leave  instantly." 

"Of  course  !  "  responds  Miss  Connie  dryly. 

"  But  the  dear  fellow  will  be  here  to-morrow 
morning  to  make  his  apologies, — and  by  the  by, 
he  has  sent  me  an  invitation  to  the  hop  at  the 
Ponce  de  Leon,"  continues  Miss  T ravers  as  if  mak 
ing  excuses  for  her  absent  lover. 

"Any  answer?"  interrupts  the  messenger  boy, 
who  has  been  gazing  open-eyed  at  Lilly's  beautiful 
face  and  stunning  gown. 

"  No,"   replies   that  young  lady  hastily  ;    but  as 


44  A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT. 

the  lad  turns  to  go,  she  suddenly  cries  "  Stay !  "  and 
sitting  at  her  desk,  writes  one  of  the  sweetest, 
loveliest,  dearest  notes  a  girl  has  ever  penned  to 
her  lover.  One  that  would  make  that  reprobate 
blush  with  shame,  if  he  could  read  it,  but  Dr.  Fred 
erick  Cassadene  has  other  occupation  this  evening. 

This  being  despatched,  and  the  boy  made  happy 
by  a  liberal  fee,  Lilly,  after  reading  the  note  over 
again,  curiously  enough  gets  the  blues.  She  tries 
the  piano  and  sings  a  pretty  love  melody,  and  that 
brings  tears  into  her  eyes. 

She  wanders  about  the  house,  and  fidgets  her 
aunt,  who  has  just  become  interested  in  a  new 
novel,  until  that  long-suffering  female  looks  up  and 
says  :  "  What's  the  matter  with  you  ?  " 

"  Noth — nothing  !  " 

"  Yes,  there  is  !  Since  you  came  here  last  night, 
you  are  not  the  comfortable  girl  you  used  to  be  a 
year  ago." 

"  Yes,  I  am.  I'm  very  comfortable — I — Aunt 
Connie !  why  do  you  tease  me  so  ?  Don't  you 
see  I  have  got  enough  to  worry  me  ?  "  and  tears 
trickle  down  her  fair  cheeks. 

"  Now  I  know  what's  the  matter  with  you  !  "  cries 
Connie  sternly.  "  You  are  jealous  !  " 

"  I — jealous  !  What  makes  you  think  that  ?  " 
mutters  Lilly  indignantly,  though  nervously. 

"  If  you  are  not  jealous,  why  did  you  try  to  pump 
me  about  the  people  Doctor  Cassadene  rode  with, 
before  you  came  here — Eh  ?  "  growls  Miss  Con- 
stantia. 

"  Did  I  do  that  ?  "  This  is  attempted  surprise 
by  the  sufferer. 


A  FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT.  45 

"  Yes,  you  did  at  tea,  twice — no,  three  times !  " 

"  Well,  whom  did  he  ride  with  ? "  cries  the  girl 
anxiously — almost  savagely. 

"  There  !  you're  bothering  me  about  it  again.  I 
suppose  you  are  jealous  of  the  beautiful  widow  who 
has  been  at  the  Ponce  de  Leon  for  the  last  week  ! 

"  Stella  Lovejoy !  "   cries  Lilly  suddenly. 

"  Ha — ah  !  you  have  said  it  !  "  remarks  the  old 
diplomat  with  a  knowing  smile. 

"  And  so  have  you  !  She  was  the  person  you  saw 
Fred  driving  with,  before  I  came  here  ! "  gasps 
Lilly,  growing  very  pale. 

"Yes/-'  replies  Constantia,  shortly.  Then  seeing 
what  a  terrible  effect  this  revelation  has  upon  her 
niece,  she  goes  on  :  "  Haven't  you  faith  in  Fred  ?  " 

"  Lots  !  "  cries  Lilly  enthusiastically,  and  then  more 
slowly:  "He — he  needs  lots."  This  last  with  a 
little  sniffle  in  her  voice. 

Whereupon  Miss  Connie  astonishes  her  niece 
by  ejaculating  :  "  So  does  every  man  !  "  then  says 
oracularly  :  "  As  a  woman  who  has  profited  by  sixty 
years  of  heart-breaking  spinsterhood,  I  tell  you,  Lilly, 
don't  remain  single,  as  I  am  !  Marry  and  believe  !" 

"  Everything  ?  " 

"  Everything,"  returns  Miss  Elder  Spinster.  "  If 
your  husband  says  he  has  been  detained  until  two 
in  the  morning  by  business,  swallow  it  !  If  he  de 
clares  that  he  has  been  at  his  club  until  three — don't 
ask  him  which  Club  !  If  he  swears  he  was  locked  out 
and  struggled  to  get  into  the  front  door  all  night, 
DON'T  DOUBT  IT !  Have  the  faith  of  the  martyrs- 
believe  in  miracles !  It  is  the  only  way  to  be  a 
happy  wife  !  " 


46  A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT. 

"Have  the  faith  of  the  martyrs!"  gasps  Lilly. 
Then  she  mutters  :  "  You  think  all  women  are  mar 
tyrs  ?  " — a  kind  of  horror  coming  into  her  beautiful 
eyes. 

"  Most  wives  are  !  "  remarks  Miss  Connie  senten- 
tiously. 

"  What  wretches  men  must  be  !  "  is  Lilly's  shud 
dering  answer  to  this  awful  statement. 

"  Not  at  all !  They  are  what  nature  made  them 
— selfish  animals,  and  as  nature  has  been  very  kind 
to  them,"  remarks  her  aunt  with  a  grim  smile,  "they 
do  the  best  for  themselves,  and  have  a  pretty  good 
time  in  this  world.  Ours  will  come  in  the  next,  my 
dear !  " 

At  which  her  niece  astonished  her,  for  she  cries: 
"  I  can't  wait !  I  have  too  impatient  a  disposition. 
I — I  believe  I'd  like  to  be  a  man,  aunt !  " 

Whereupon  the  aged  spinster  raises  up  her  hands 
in  horror,  and  ejaculates:  "Thank  heaven!  you  are 
of  a  nobler  nature  than  our  tyrant,  man.  Love 
your  Doctor  Fred,  but  love  him  blindly,  and — 
please — please  let  me  read  my  novel !  " 

With  that,  she  takes  her  precious  book  with  her, 
and  departs,  leaving  Lilly  muttering  to  herself: 
"  Love  Doctor  Fred — love  him  blindly  !  If  he  rides 
with  that  widow  again,  I  shall  hate  Doctor  Fred 
and  hate  him  blindly !  "  then  cries,  "  No,  no —  '  in 
horror  at  the  thought.  "  I  love  him,  for  I  am  jeal 
ous.  It  is  awful ! — awful !  If  I  could  but  remember 
Aunt  Connie's  instructions  and  Fred's  advice — if  I 
could  only  love  in  the  selfish,  careless  way  men 
/Jo,  and  be  happy ! "  As  she  says  this,  her  eyes 
fall  upon  the  picture  of  old  Hauser  Oglethorpe,  for 


A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT.  47 

the  foregoing  conversation  has  taken  place  in  the 
dining  room.  The  small  cunning  cruel  eyes  of  the 
canvas  seem  to  grin  and  leer  at,  and  mock  her. 

This  makes  her  remember  the  purchase  of  the 
morning,  and  she  thinks,  "  I'll  drive  Fred  out  of  my 
mind,  and  become  at  least  placid,  by  investigating 
the  contents  of  the  little  box,"  and  so  picks  it  up. 

But  as  she  does  so,  her  eyes  are  turned  once  more 
to  the  picture  on  the  wall,  and  now  it  seems  to  have 
a  broad  grin  upon  its  countenance,  and  she  mutters 
to  herself,  "  Absurd  !  My  nerves  are  running  away- 
with  me  !  The  idea  of  a  picture  grinning  !  "  Then 
shaking  her  ringer  at  it,  she  forces  herself  to  say : 
"  I'll  not  open  this  in  face  of  you,  sir/'  and  passes, 
box  in  hand,  to  the  parlor. 

Here,  sitting  down  near  the  little  table  that  holds 
the  old  ebony  casket,  the  family  heirloom,  she  re 
ceives  another  shock  ;  for  as  she  takes  off  the 
wrapper  from  the  one  purchased  at  Vedder's,  she 
perceives  that  barring  sea  water  and  the  stains  of 
exposure  to  weather,  the  two  are  identical,  and 
drops  the  one  she  has  in  her  hands,  with  a  start, 
beside  its  duplicate. 

At  this  moment  the  voice  of  her  maid,  who  comes 
in  with  a  tray  covered  with  tea-things  and  sand 
wiches  gives  her  confidence. 

Jane  says  to  her,  "  Honey,  ef  yo's  goin'  to  sit  up  } 
late,  I  thought  a  cup  of  tea  would  be  refreshin'  to 
yo'.     Yo'  aunt  has  gone  to  bed  with  her  novel,  so  I 
was  afeared  yo'd  be  lonely." 

"  Tea  is  just  what  I  want,  Jane,"  returns  her  mis 
tress.  "  You  can  put  it  on  the  stand  over  there,  and 
I  shall  not  require  you  any  further  this  evening. 


48  A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT. 

So,  if  Mr.  Gustavus  Duncan  makes  his  appearance, 
after  his  duties  are  over  at  the  Ponce  de  Leon,  you 
need  not  hesitate  to  give  him  your  undivided  at 
tention." 

"  Yes,  I  'spects  Gus  is  comin'  over,  but  I've  heard 
strange  'ports  'bout  him  roun'  town  to-day,  an'  ef 
he  don't  give  an  explanashun  of  hisself,  he'll  heah 
somethin'  startling  !  "  remarks  Jane,  with  a  savage 
sort  of  snarl,  as  she  retires  from  the  room. 

"  Ho  !  ho,  she's  happy  too  !  "  mutters  Lilly,  sti 
fling  a  nasty  little  laugh  that  is  not  pleasant,  com 
ing  from  one  who  is  young  and  should  be  happy. 

As  she  says  this,  she  drinks  hurriedly  a  cup  of 
tea,  which  is  much  too  scalding  to  please  her,  and 
cries  vivaciously,  "  That  settles  my  nerves  !  Now  I 
am  equal  to  my  antiquarian  investigation  !" 

Then  picking  up  the  ebony  casket,  once  more,  she 
looks  at  it  meditatively,  and  thinks,  "  If  this  should 
be  the  one  old  Hauser  told  about — the  one  that 
would  make  him  rich — the  one  that  would  make  a 
woman  a  man  ! "  next  gasps,  "  What  an  absurd 
idea — uncanny — weird — awful  !  " 

!  i  But  curiosity  is  always  potent  in  woman,  and  Lilly 
puts  the  little  key  she  has  obtained  from  the  lock 
smith  into  the  old  wards,  and  clicks  back  the  lock 
of  the  box  in  a  hurried,  nervous,  desperate  way,  and 
so  lifting  up  the  lid,  within  is  a  little  package,  done 
neatly  up  in  brown  paper,  and  sealed. 

After  a  moment  she  lifts  it  out  and  it  seems  won 
derfully  heavy,  if  entirely  manuscript. 

The  outside  of  the  packet  bears  an  inscription, 
and  reading  the  time-stained  characters  carefully, 
she  gives  a  little  shriek,  and  drops  the  affair  as  it 


A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT.  49 

were  red  hot  into  her  lap  with  a  shudder,  for  she  has 
read  : 

"To  be  conveyed  to  my  family,  by  the  finder,  un 
opened !  HAUSER  OGLETHORPE." 

The  signature  is  that  of  her  great-grandfather— 
whose  picture  has  been  grinning  at  her  in  the  dining- 
room — the  old  sea-dog  and  slaver,  Hauser  Oglc- 
thorpe  himself. 

After  a  pause  to  calm  her  nerves  and  thinking 
excitedly,  "  Can  it  be  that  I  am  to  know  the  secret 
my  ancestor  spoke  about,  or  was  it  as  Aunt  Connie 
thinks  but  the  jabbering  of  a  senile  imbecile  ? " 
Lilly's  curiosity  again  dominates  her  and  breaking 
the  seals  she  opens  the  packet.  Its  contents  arc 
two  documents,  both  stained  by  age — one  short, 
apparently  a  memorandum,  the  other  of  much 
greater  length,  and  carefully  wrapped  up  in  them  a 
little  glass  vial,  its  stopper  sealed  with  wax — within 
it  she  can  easily  perceive  four  amber-colored  beads 
or  seeds,  each  one  about  the  size  of  a  small  grape. 
Their  glazed  outlines  have  a  peculiar  phosphorescent 
gleam  about  which  the  lamplight  plays,  giving  them 
the  varying  hues  of  the  rainbow.  As  she  turns  the 
vial  in  her  hand  these  seem  to  leap  about  and  play 
with  one  another  as  if  instinct  with  life  and  vitality. 
Upon  the  bottle  which  holds  them  has  been  pasted 
a  slip  of  paper  which  bears  this  curious — perhaps 
uncanny  inscription  : 


FOR  WOMEN  WHO  SUFFER.    HA  !   HA  !   HA  ! 


50  A  FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT. 

CHAPTER  V. 

THE     MARVELLOUS      RECORD      OF      HAUSER     OGLE- 
THORPE. 

"  FOR  women  who  suffer,"  quotes  Lilly — with  a 
bewitching  little  shudder,  and  turns  to  the  perusal 
of  the  first  and  smaller  document. 

This  has  apparently  been  hurriedly  written.  Its 
paper  is  yellow  with  time  and  stained  with  sea 
water,  and  is  covered  with  a  peculiar,  cramped  hand 
writing.  This  she  manages  to  decipher,  but  only 
by  taking  the  utmost  care,  and  even  then  very 
slowly.  It  reads: 

October  I5th,  in  the  Year  of  Our  Lord  1813. 

Being  pursued  by  the  English  sloop  of  war,  Fal 
con,  and  in  danger  of  wreckage  and  losing  my  ship 
off  the  coast  of  Florida, — I,  Hauser  Oglethorpe,  of 
the  Parish  of  St.  Mark,  Carolina  Plantations,  in  order 
to  increase  the  worldly  goods  of  my  kindred  and 
make  them  rich,  give  to  them  the  following  mar 
vellous  statement  written  at  my  leisure  on  board 
ship,  fearing  some  such  fate  as  has  come  upon  me. 
It  will  not  be  believed,  but  it  is  the  Devil's  own 
truth,  so  help  me  Beelzebub  ! 

I  have  not  much  more  time  for  writing,  as  that 
accursed  British  sea  tramp  has  already  opened  fire 
upon  us  unarmed  slavers  with  his  long  thirty-two, 
for  which  may  they  all  go  to  Davy  Jones'  locker 
and  their  infernal  souls  go  to  the  place  I  am  bound 
for! 

The  paper  finishes  with  two  or  three  imprecations 
so  horrible  in  their  blasphemous  intensity  tl^at  the 


A  FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT.  51 

girl  drops  it  with  a  gasp  ;  but  fired  by  curiosity, 
after  a  little  time  picks  up  and  deciphers  the  longer 
document  which  is  headed : 

Record  of  my  Marvellous  Discovery  of  the   Tree  of 
Sexual  Change. 

and  drops  it  with  a  cry  of  mocking  unbelief.  But 
gazing  at  the  document  again  gives  a  little  gasp  of 
wonder — for  it  continues  in  a  kind  of  weird  presti 
digitation  : 

THAT'S  WHAT  I  KNEW  YOU'D  DO — YOU'D  DROP 
THE  PAPER  AND  SAY  IT  WAS  AN  INFERNAL  SAILOR'S 
YARN.  READ  TO  THE  END — THEN  TRY  A  SEED  ! 

On  this  voyage  to  the  West  Coast  of  Africa", 
after  being  driven  by  contrary  winds  to  take  refuge 
between  Quorra,  or  the  mouth  of  the  Niger  River, 
and  Bonny,  on  an  excursion  after  both  white  and 
black  ivory,  I  was  compelled  by  the  presence  of  an 
accursed  British  frigate  to  slip  my  cables  in  the 
night.  I  sailed  N.  by  W.  about  150  miles,  taking 
refuge  from  the  observation  of  my  enemy  between 
the  islands  that  stud  the  lower  part  of  this  coast, 
and  the  main  land,  in  anchorage  too  shallow  to  per 
mit  entry  by  the  frigate,  and  confident  that  I  and 
my  crew  of  fifty  sturdy  Yankee  tars  could  give  ac 
count  of  any  boats  that  they  might  send  against  me. 

The  longitude  of  this  place  is  about  5°  E.  and 
latitude  7°  35'  N.  and  I  soon  succeeded  in  obtaining 
a  cargo  of  slaves  from  a  barracoon  in  charge  of  a 
couple  of  Portuguese,  paying,  however,  a  good  price 
for  them  in  beads,  muskets  and  ammunition.  Chanc 
ing  to  notice  one  of  the  coffles  of  slaves  as  they  came 
on  board,  to  my  astonishment  I  perceived  they  were 


52  A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT. 

all  men — a  most  unusual  circumstance  ;  ana  on  ques 
tioning  one  of  my  Portuguese  factors,  I  was  told  the 
astounding  story  that  they  came  from  A  TRIBE  OF 
NATIVES  WHO  WERE  ALL  MEN. 

Not  believing  such  bosh,  I  shouted,  "  One  thou 
sand  pounds  of  ivory  against  a  hundred  niggers  that 
story  is  a  marine's  yarn  !  "  Judge  of  my  astonish 
ment  when  my  wager  was  promptly  taken  up. 

To  settle  this,  the  Portuguese  trader  and  I  made 
a  journey  to  the  village  of  the  tribe,  located  where 
the  hills  come  down  to  join  the  lowlands,  one  day's 
march  in  the  interior.  May  I  be  cat-hauled  if  I 
hadn't  lost  my  bet!  The  tribe  were  all  men — be 
yond  peradventure  ! 

On  investigation  I  found  they  recruited  their 
ranks  by  capturing  women  from  the  surrounding 
tribes,  and  these  women,  extraordinary  to  tell,  soon 
after  entering  the  village  became  men  also — every 
man  jack  of  them — or  every  woman  jack  of  them — 
whichever  you  like  to  put  it. 

Quassi,  the  chief  of  this  singular  gang,  was  a 
wily  nigger.  I  tried  to  get  his  wondrous  secret 
out  of  him,  but  he  only  muttered  that  spirits  would 
punish  him  if  he  told  ;  for  these  sacrilegious  brutes 
have  an  extraordinary  superstition  that  evil  will  come 
to  them  if  they  reveal  the  mighty  secret  they  possess. 

But  it  was  a  mighty  secret  I  had  determined  to 
know.  I  made  Quassi  drunk — then  plied  him  with 
questions,  but  he  onlv  jabbered,  '  Who  wants  to  be 
woman  when  can  be  man  ! ' 

Disappointed  in  milder  means,  by  the  use  of  the 
all-potent  fire-water,  I  inveigled  Quassi  to  the  coast, 
the  creature  going  with  me  very  simply,  thinking 


A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT.  53 

me  his  friend  ;  and  carrying  him  on  board  my  ship, 
I  ordered  him  to  tell  me  his  secret,  but  in  the  surly 
manner  of  these  dogged  blacks  he  muttered  that 
misfortune  would  come  to  him  if  he  did. 

I  told  him  misfortune  would  come  to  him  if  he 
didn't,  and  turning  him  over  to  my  boatswain,  an 
athletic  Spaniard  with  the  temper  of  Old  Nick,  I 
ordered  him  four  round  dozen  at  the  gang-way  with 
the  cat-o'-nine-tails,  and  a  brine  dip  afterwards. 
Under  the  persuasion  of  my  athletic  warrant  officer 
the  wretch  gave  up  his  secret.  There  was  a  tree, 
he  sobbed,  the  seeds  of  which  changed  men  to 
women,  and  vice  versa,  women  to  men.  No  man 
ever  ate  one,  but  all  the  women  of  his  tribe  did. 

I  ordered  him  to  take  me  to  this  wonderful  tree, 
at  which  the  wretch  cried  out  he  would  be  cursed 
forever  by  his  Obi  if  he  did, — but  another  two  dozen 
at  the  gang-way  persuaded  him  to  do  my  bidding. 

Next  day  we  set  out — I,  my  boatswain,  and  four 
stalwart  seamen — in  my  gig,  carrying  with  us  a 
week's  provisions  ;  for  Quassi  in  his  gibbering  way 
had  made  known  to  me  it  was  a  three  days'  jour 
ney  to  the  object  of  my  desires.  The  surly  savage 
I  carried  manacled  with  me  in  the  stern  of  my  boat. 
As  we  left  the  ship  I  clapped  a  pistol  to  his  head 
and  told  him  as  he  loved  his  life  not  to  betray  me. 

Under  my  boatswain's  persuasions,  he  guided  us  to 
a  two  days'  journey  up  the  coast,  to  where  the  cliffs 
come  down  to  the  sea,  and  then  began  to  tremble 
and  pray  to  his  gods,  as  nearly  as  I  could  make  out, 
in  his  lingo,  to  forgive  him  what  he  was  doing. 
I  clapped  the  pistol  to  his  head  and  persuaded  him 
again,  and  under  his  direction  my  gig  was  turned  for 


54  A  FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT. 

the  cliffs,  which  seemed  to  have  no  opening,  being 
covered  with  heavy  verdure,  tropical  plants,  and 
great  trees  the  branches  of  which  came  down  to  the 
water  to  meet  the  mangroves  growing  in  the  shal 
low  places. 

Parting  the  branches  of  one  of  these  trees  that 
grew  to  the  water's  edge  and  forcing  the  boat  in, 
under  Quassi's  guidance,  a  narrow  cleft  was  dis 
covered,  cut  straight  through  the  solid  cliffs,  that 
rose  above  us  hundreds  of  feet.  Though  the  water 
was  deep,  the  opening  was  so  narrow,  that  as  we  en 
tered  this  defile,  the  sun  was  cut  off  above  us,  the 
water  grew  dark  to  the  view  and  the  blackness  of 
night  came  over  us.  There  was  scarce  room  for  the 
play  of  the  oars  in  my  gig  between  the  rocks,  and  a 
strong  current  setting  out  to  sea  made  our  progress 
very  slow.  Bats,  disturbed  by  us,  flapped  their 
wings  over  our  heads  ;  serpents,  coiled  upon  the 
branches  of  the  trees  that  grew  out  from  the  sides 
of  the  cliff,  hissed  at  us  as  we  passed  beneath  them. 
To  encourage  my  men,  who  wanted  to  turn  back,  I 
went  into  the  bow  of  the  boat,  conning  it  myself 
through  the  passage,  and  after  four  hours  of  hard 
labor,  the  sunlight  came  to  us  again  ; — we  had  passed 
through  the  cleft  of  overhanging  rocks,  and  found  a 
lagoon  opening  before  us  in  weird  loveliness. 

Its  shallow  waters,  made  black  by  African  mud, 
ended  in  swamps  on  every  side  save  that  on  which  we 
entered  it.  These  were  bordered  by  cane-brakes  filled 
with  serpents  and  crocodiles — and  the  heavy  forests 
beyond  resounded  with  the  jabberings  of  monkeys 
diversified  and  made  terrible  by  the  roars  of  lions 
and  cries  of  elephants. 


A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT.  55 

About  two  miles  from  us  the  sun — even  now 
sinking  behind  the  mountain  tops — rested  on  a 
beautiful  island,  which  Quassi  pointed  out  as  the 
end  of  our  journey,  and  sunk  on  his  knees  and  jab 
bered  petitions  to  his  deities  to  forgive  him  for  dis 
closing  the  sacred  secrets  of  his  tribe. 

Inspired  by  the  news,  my  men  gave  way  readily 
and  the  boat  surged  through  the  calm  waters,  once 
in  a  while  colliding  with  a  crocodile,  for  all  the 
beasts  and  reptiles  and  fishes  about  here  knew  so 
little  of  man  that  they  did  not  fear  him.  Under  the 
stalwart  strokes  of  my  crew,  before  the  sun  had 
sunk,  we  reached  the  island,  which  was  but  one 
hundred  feet  long  by  half  that  width,  and  upon  it 
for  the  first  time  I  saw  the 

"  TREE   OF   SEXUAL   CHANGE," 

the  most  beautiful  plant  upon  which  the  sun  has 
ever  shone — the  most  curious  that  ever  human  eyes 
have  gazed  upon.  Its  long  stems  rise  to  the  height 
of  fifty  feet,  covered  with  graceful  leaves  of  a 
supernatural  green  and  crimson  blossoms  of  such 
marvellous  beauty  and  size  that  our  eyes  could 
hardly  be  withdrawn  from  their  loveliness.  Even 
the  perfume  of  its  flowers  had  a  wondrous  effect. 
As  we  breathed  we  seemed  to  become  effeminate 
and  our  natures  milder,  and  even  our  cruel  Spanish 
boatswain  became  softer  in  his  language  and  less 
savage  in  his  blasphemy. 

This  tree,  Quassi  informed  me,  blossomed  and 
seeded  but  once  in  a  thousand  moons — the  sacred 
periods  of  its  harvest  being  carefully  kept  by  the 
Obi  men  of  his  tribe. 

At  these  times  carefully  watched  for  through  sue- 


56  A  FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT. 

ceeding  years — a  party  of  picked  men  came  from  the 
village  in  canoes  to  harvest  the  precious  seeds,  and 
these  were  then  kept  guarded  in  the  tribe's  obi-house 
for  the  use  of  future  generations  until  the  tree 
bloomed  again, — one  thousand  moons  thereafter. 

While  listening  to  his  yarn  I  was  inspecting  the 
tree,  and  cried  :  "  Here's  luck  ;  we've  struck  the  time 
of  harvest — once  in  a  thousand  moons  ;  "  for  the 
pods  were  ripe  and  opening,  and  dropping  over  the 
ground  the  amber-colored  seeds. 

At  this  announcement,  my  crew — all  of  them  hav 
ing  discovered  the  secret  on  our  journey — gave  a 
cheer,  and  into  Quassi's  eyes  came  a  cruel,  cunning 
gleam  that  spoke  of  vengeance  for  the  boatswain's 
cat-o'-nine-tails  that  had  scored  his  old  back  with 
many  a  sore  welt  and  burning  blister.  Had  I  not 
been  too  much  interested  in  the  tree — fool  that  I 
was — I  would  have  noticed  his  gleaming  eyeballs, 
that  had  become  red  by  suffering,  and  the  hideous 
grin  that  showed  his  white  teeth,  and  would  have 
known  what  they  meant. 

Securing  the  boat,  the  crew  landed,  bringing 
Quassi  with  them,  and  we  stood  upon  the  shore — 
myself,  five  white  men  and  one  grinning  negro,  and 
before  us  was  the  tree,  in  whose  wondrous  power 
we  as  yet  scarcely  believed  but  soon  would  know. 

"  Blow  my  eyes !  "  cried  Bill  Jones,  a  strapping 
sailor  who  pulled  bow  oar  in  my  gig.  "  One  of  them 
little  things  turn  me  into  a  woman  ?  "  And  before  I 
could  stop  him — he  had  bolted  one  of  the  amber 
seeds  and  stood  looking  at  us  astonished,  his  eyes 
rolling,  half  in  fear  half  in  amazement.  Then  he 
suddenly  uttered  a  bashful  cry  and  hid  himself  be- 


A  FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT.  $7 

hind  the  foliage  as  if  timid  and  ashamed  ;  while  we 
gazed  open-mouthed  upon  him, — for  his  screams 
were  no  more  those  of  the  hoarse  sailor,  but  those  of 
a  shrill-voiced  woman,  and  he  simpered  and  giggled 
and  looked  at  us  in  coquetry.  Then  his  maiden  an 
tics  made  us  laugh  until  the  tears  rolled  down  our 
cheeks,  for  Bill  Jones  was  by  no  means  a  prim-man 
nered  prude— in  fact,  so  inspired  the  rest  of  us  men 
with  curiosity  that,  idiots  that  we  were,  we  all  did 
eat  a  seed,  save  the  Spanish  boatswain,  who  swore 
nothing  would  make  him  become  a  woman,  espe 
cially  when  there  would  be  five  fat,  lusty  and  healthy 
wenches  on  the  same  lone  island  as  himself. 

And  soon  we  all  became  women,  and  thought 
ourselves  beautiful  and  had  wench's  airs,  graces,  feel 
ings — and  walked  down  to  see  our  reflections  in  the 
limpid  water  and  ask  ourselves  if  we  were  not  love 
ly.  And  after  that  we  five  did  look  lovingly  upon 
the  boatswain,  for  he  was  the  only  white  man  among 
us, — and  so  grew  jealous  of  each  other,  and  fought 
with  each  other,  that  the  boatswain  might  be  our 
own  best  fellow,  scratching  and  tearing  each  other's 
hair, — while  he,  our  lord  and  master,  looked  on  and 
laughed,  crying  in  a  jocular  way :  "  Go  it,  Poll  ! 
Scratch  her,  Sue  !  Ho  ho  !  This  is  a  rare  harem 
for  the  boatswain  of  the  Firefly — I  have  as  many 
wenches  as  an  Arab  sheik  !  " 

Upon  this  scene  Quassi  looked  with  grins  of 
pleasure,  hoping,  as  I  afterwards  knew,  in  his  cun 
ning  African  mind,  that  the  boatswain  would  eat  a 
seed,  so  he  could  conquer  all  of  us  ;  for  the  four 
sailors  and  myself,  having  become  women,  were 
timid  and  would  not  encounter  man  in  battle. — 


58  A  FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT. 

The  boatswain  also  liking  the  situation  vastly,  used 
his  power  over  us  and  forbade  us  to  eat  the  seeds, 
so  that  we  might  become  men  again  and  his  equals 
and  masters. 

Thus  we  might  have  continued  there  forever,  had 
not  I,  in  preparing  his  evening  meal  for  the  savage 
boatswain,  with  whom  I  had  fallen  deeply  in  love 
and  of  whom  I  was  much  afraid,  in  gathering  wood 
for  the  fire  accidentally  picked  up  one  of  the  seeds ; 
and  curiosity  coming  upon  me,  a  woman,  I  had  eaten 
it,  and  found  myself  once  more  a  man,  and  as  such 
the  Spaniard's  captain. 

Striding  up  to  him  as  he  sat  languishing  under 
the  attentions  of  two  handsome  girls — one  of  whom 
had  been  the  coxswain  of  my  boat  and  the  other 
pulled  the  bow  oar — I  commanded  him  to  hold 
each  of  the  four  women  while  I  administered  a  seed 
to  them. 

Recognizing  that  I  was  myself  again  and  as  such 
his  commanding  officer,  he  did  my  bidding,  though 
sulkily,  and  a  few  minutes  after  my  crew  of  stalwart 
men,  under  my  orders,  was  quickly  loading  the  boat 
with  several  bags  full  of  the  precious  seeds  we  gath 
ered  hastily  from  the  wondrous  Tree  of  Sexual 
Change. 

But  rapid  as  had  been  our  labors,  the  night  had 
come  upon  us  more  quickly.  Safe  navigation  of  the 
lagoon  in  the  darkness  was  impossible, — we  must 
wait  upon  this  island  until  the  morning.  Then  the 
men,  made  superstitious  by  the  astounding  properties 
of  this  unnatural  tree,  grew  timid  at  the  thought  and 
built  a  huge  bonfire  so  that  light  might  give  them 
courage  ;  and  I  ordered  them  to  construct  a  pyre 


A  FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT.  59 

round  the  Tree  of  Sexual  Change,  to  be  lighted  as 
we  left  the  island,  for  I  feared  other  adventurers  and 
discoverers  and  wanted  a  monopoly  of  the  won 
drous  seeds  so  that  women  would  beg  me  for  them, 
and  queens  and  princesses  cringe  to  me  the  gruff 
old  sailor  and  the  treasures  of  the  earth  be  poured 
upon  me  by  beauties  who  longed  to  be  beauties  no 
more — ^only  simple  men. 

I  served  out  extra  rations  of  rum  at  six  bells  ; 
then  taking  our  bite  of  hard  tack  and  salt  horse,  we 
all  lay  down  to  sleep  together.  But  I  could  not 
close  my  eyes,  which  was  fortunate,  otherwise  I 
would  not  have  been  writing  this. 

As  nearly  as  I  could  make  it  out,  about  three 
o'clock  in  the  morning,  old  Quassi  became  restless 
in  his  irons  (for  we  still  kept  him  securely  bound 
and  chained),  and  his  restlessness  made  me  suspi 
cious.  Looking  at  him  by  the  flickering  light  of 
the  camp-fire,  I  could  see  that  he  was  listening  in 
tently.  I  opened  my  ears  also,  but  heard  nothing, 
savage  senses  beating  civilized  senses.  He  appar 
ently  heard  something  which  pleased  him,  because 
he  began  to  chuckle  to  himself  and  grin  and  chant 
and  laugh  in  an  uncanny  manner, — and  listening 
again  I  heard  a  sound  that  made  me  start  up  and 
wake  my  men; — and  cry,  "  The"  splash  of  paddles  on 
the  lagoon — the  savages  !  " 

Another  second  and  the  crew  had  silently  manned 
the  boat,: — but  on  looking  round  for  Quassi  he  had 
disappeared.  Ironed  as  he  was,  the  old  man  had 
wriggled  himself  into  the  thicket,  and  we  had  no 
time  to  search  for  him,  for  the  paddles  of  the  canoes 
sounded  very  near. 


60  A  FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT. 

So  tossing  a  brand  from  the  fire  into  the  pile  of 
light  wood  that  we  had  built  about  the  sacred  tree  I 
gave  my  orders  in  a  whisper  and  we  moved  away 
into  the  darkness  ; — and  just  in  time,  for  we  had 
not  gone  a  cable's  length  when  we  saw  by  the 
light  of  the  burning  Tree  of  Sexual  Change,  that, 
blazing  up,  illuminated  the  weird  scene,  ten  canoes 
glide  up  to  the  island  shore. 

Then  I  guessed  what  had  made  the  old  man  grin 
when  he  saw  the  tree  was  ripe  for  harvest. — He 
knew  that  that  night  a  party  from  his  tribe,  headed 
by  their  Obi  men,  would  come  to  harvest  after  a 
thousand  moons  of  waiting  the  precious  seeds. 

As  the  wild  niggers  sprung  on  shore  I  heard  a 
voice  shriek  to  them  in  their  lingo,  and  by  their 
answering  yell  of  hideous  dismay  and  rage  knew 
that  Quassi  had  told  them  their  gods  had  been 
insulted,  the  secret  of  their  tribe  ravaged  from  them 
and  their  Obi  tree  polluted  and  destroyed — and 
shuddered  as  I  thought  of  their  revenge. 

My  men,  hardened  ruffians  as  they  were,  trembled 
as  they  heard  the  awful  wail  and  hideous  screams  as 
they  pulled  away,  I  setting  the  course  as  nearly  as 
possible  to  the  entrance  of  the  lagoon  by  the  red 
glow  from  the  burning  tree  that  cast  its  light  to 
show  us  to  its  avefTgers  whose  eyes  are  like  those 
cats  at  night,  the  darkness  of  their  forests  develop 
ing  nocturnal  vision. 

So  they  were  after  us  !  My  gig — a  quick  racing 
boat — flew  through  the  waters,  jostling  many  a  sleep 
ing  crocodile  and  narrowly  missing  a  hippopotamus 
that  was  tossing  the  water  from  his  ugly  snout.  But 
strong  as  we  rowed,  the  savages  paddled  their  light 


A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT.  6l 

canoes  more  strongly.  "  Throw  over  everything,"  I 
whispered,  "  except  the  precious  seeds.  They  will 
make  our  fortune  forever  if  we  carry  them  away." 
Then  overboard  went  everything  except  our  arms, 
one  small  keg  of  biscuit  and  our  water  cask.  Thus 
lightened,  the  savages  overtook  us  more  slowly, 
though  they  were  almost  fatally  near,  when  Bill 
Jones,  the  bow  man,  screamed  out,  "  We  are  at  the 
cliff,  Cap'n — I  think  I  see  the  opening!  By  Jove! 
we've  struck  it  right." 

Then  the  men  made  the  ash  blades  of  their  oars 
bend  with  a  mighty  sweep,  and  a  shock  nearly  threw 
me  out  of  the  boat ;  for  in  the  darkness  we  had  mis 
taken  the  passage  and  dashed  against  the  solid 
cliff. 

The  next  instant  we  were  all  struggling  in  the 
water  and  arrows  from  the  savages  flying  among  us, 
their  war  clubs  striking  us — the  light  from  the  most 
marvellous  of  God's  plants  that  we  had  impiously 
fired  lighting  up  the  lake  to  show  us  to  our  ene 
mies.  Being  an  expert  swimmer,  I  took  a  long  dive 
and  turned  towards  the  marshy  shores  of  the  lagoon, 
where  I  made  a  landing  and  found  myself  followed 
by  the  Spanish  boatswain,  who  swam  like  a  fish, 
and  Bill  Jones,  the  active  bow  oar  of  my  gig.  To 
my  astonishment,  the  boatswain  carried  one  of  the 
smaller  sacks  of  the  precious  seeds  in  his  hand. 
He  had  clenched  it  even  under  the  arrows  of  the 
savages  and  the  waves  of  the  crocodile-haunted 
lagoon. 

Silently  we  pressed  through  the  swamp,  its  sicken 
ing  miasma  mingling  with  the  early  morning  air,  for 
the  sun  was  just  rising, — and  sneaked  through  the 


62  A   FLORIDA  ENCHANTMENT. 

thick  jungle,  the  cries  of  our  pursuers  showing  they 
had  found  our  trail. 

Still  we  struggled  on,  the  sun  coming  up  to  burn 
us ;  when,  just  as  we  were  about  to  reach  the  higher 
ground  and  leave  the  swamp  slime  behind  us,  Jones 
shrieked  out  a  horrid  cry,  '  My  God,  Cap'n,  he's  bit 
me ! '  And  looking  back  I  saw  a  dying  sailor,  and 
beside  him  one  of  those  awful  serpents  of  West 
African  marshes  and  damp  ground,  the  river-jack, 
the  bite  of  which  is  death. 

To  remain  meant  capture  and  death  for  us  also  ; 
and  the  boatswain  and  myself  hurried  along,  turn 
ing  our  steps  toward  the  sea,  which  now  could 
not  be  more  than  a  mile  or  two  away  from  us, 
though  we  had  a  range  of  hills  to  climb  before  we 
would  reach  it.  Ere  we  lost  sight  of  our  dying 
comrade,  the  savages,  headed  by  old  Quassi,  came 
up  to  him,  and  looking  backwards  I  shuddered  as  I 
saw  the  vindictive  nigger  finish  Jones'  agony  by  a 
smash  from  a  war  club  and  then  bound  on  with  a 
whoop  of  joy  in  pursuit  of  me  and  the  Spanish 
boatswain  in  vengeance  for  his  tortured  body  and 
his  outraged  deities. 

Through  a  dense  forest  of  trees  rilled  with  mon 
keys,  whose  horrid  jabberings  as  we  passed  beneath 
them  gave  signal  to  our  enemies  of  the  path  we  fol 
lowed,  we  struggled  along,  running  where  the  ground 
permitted,  but  most  times  clambering  through  dense 
underbrush,  yet  all  the  time  struggling  onward. 

Then  the  murmuring  of  the  distant  sea  brought 
hope  to  us,  and  the  boatswain  muttered  :  "  We've 
pulled  through  the  trip — with  seeds  enough  to  make 
us  nabobs." 


A  FLORIDA  ENCHANTMENT.  63 

But  even  as  this  left  his  lips  the  wood  resounded 
with  a  mighty  roar,  a  yellow,  tawny  beast  flew 
through  the  air  and  struck  the  Spaniard  to  the 
ground  with  its  big  claws,  and  the  white  fangs  of  a 
lioness  whose  two  cubs  were  playing  in  the  pathway 
sunk  themselves  into  the  neck  of  the  sailor  as  he 
uttered  his  death  shriek. 

The  bag  of  precious  seeds  was  torn  to  pieces  in 
this  .awful  struggle  of  man  and  beast,  and  the  amber 
pellets  tossed  hither  and  thither  were  trampled  into 
the  black  mould  and  swampy  undergrowth.  Almost 
struggling  with  the  lioness  myself,  in  my  despera 
tion  I  quickly  gathered  what  I  could  of  the  sacred 
seeds,  for  Quassi  and  his  gang  were  now  upon  me. 
They  were  only  four  ;  but  four  of  these  magic  things 
were  enough  if  I  could  escape  ! 

The  lioness  was  barring  the  pathway  to  my  pur 
suers,  and  snarling  in  their  faces,  they  did  not  dare 
to  dispute  the  way  with  her,,  and  so  with  gasps  of 
joy  I  hurried  to  the  beach,  which  by  a  blessed  fore 
thought  I  had  ordered  to  be  patrolled  by  a  boat 
under  the  command  of  my  second  officer. 

He  soon  saw  my  signal,  and  by  the  next  day  I 
was  on  board  my  ship,  minus  the  crew  of  my  gig 
and  the  Spanish  boatswain,  but  having  in  my  pocket 
the  four  wondrous  seeds  in  the  little  vial  I  have 
marked  "  For  Women  Who  Suffer,"  which  mean  to 
me  four  fortunes  ;  for  rich  women  as  well  as  poor 
ones  suffer  the  pangs  of  their  weak,  down-trodden 
sex,  and  I  can  sell  them  to  the  princesses  and  queens 
of  the  world. 

Within  half  an  hour  of  getting  on  shipboard — 
our  cargo  being  all  below  the  hatches — we  weighed 


64  A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT. 

anchor  and  put  to  sea;  for  Quassi's  whole  tribe 
would  soon  be  upon  us  to  avenge  the  insult  to  their 
gods  in  the  destruction  of  the  tree  that  blooms 
once  in  a  thousand  moons  to  make  such  womeji  as 
are  blest  by  eating  of  its  seeds  masculine  and  happy. 
This  story  will  not  be  believed  by  the  average 
man,  or  average  woman,  either,  but  to  these  facts  I 
swear  as  I  am  now  a  living  man  and  was  for  one 
short  hour  a  woman  and  very  beautiful  and  very  vain. 
HAUSER  OGLETHORPE, 

of  the  Parish  of  St.  Mark,  Carolina  Plantations. 
Given  on  the  27th  day  of  August, 
Anno   Domini   1813,   upon  the 
American  Bark  Firefly. 


CHAPTER    VI. 

"WHY   NOT?" 

As  Lillian  finishes  the  manuscript,  which  she  has 
read  eagerly — intently  ;  pausing  at  times  to  shudder 
at  the  old  man's  cruelty,  disclosed  by  its  pages,  she 
exclaims :  "  Hauser  Oglethorpe  a  woman — and  very 
beautiful  !  "  and  thinking  of  the  old  sea-dog's  leering 
picture  in  the  dining-room,  a  harsh  and  strained 
laugh  comes  from  between  her  pretty  lips. 

This  is  succeeded  by  a  pause  of  contemplation 
when  she  suddenly  ejaculates,  "  What  a  Rider  Hag- 
gardish  story  !  I  feel  like  the  veritable  '  SHE  '  her 
self  ;  "  the  record  having  made  a  strange  impression 
on  her. 

She  tries  to  shake  it  off  exclaiming,  "  Pooh !  one 
would  think  I  believe  this  likely  sea  yarn  !  " 

Then  the  shining  amber  seeds  catching  her  eye 


A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT.  65 

she  seizes  the  vial,  wraps  it  up  in  the  manuscript, 
and  placing  the  package  in  her  pocket,  looks  out 
through  the  open  windows  upon  the  moonlight  that 
is  falling  upon  the  waters  of  Matanzas  Inlet  with  its 
banks  shadowed  by  moss-bearded  oaks  and  cypress, 
and  thinks,  "  Had  I  better  tell  this  to  Aunt  Connie? 
It  will  put  the  old  lady  in  a  marvellous  state  of 
excitement."  Next  impressed  by  the  weird  moon 
light  effects  of  the  landscape  she  murmurs,  "  This 
country  with  its  wondrous  flowers  that  blossom 
when  we  should  have  snow,  its  cypress  trees  and 
reptile-haunted  swamps,  seems  to  me  uncanny, 
also,"  and  gives  a  little  shudder  and  sneers  :  "  I 
feel  creepy  myself." 

Suddenly  she  mutters,  "  This  story  is  too  much 
for  my  nerves!"  and  would  turn  away  and  run 
upstairs  to  her  aunt's  bedroom  and  break  in  upon 
that  lady's  fascinating  novel  and  tell  her  that  she 
has  a  more  wondrous  tale  than  is  often  seen  be 
tween  yellow-backs, — when  she  hears  the  sound  of 
excited  conversation  on  the  veranda  outside,  and 
Jane's  voice  comes  to  her  in  agitated  tones :  "  Oh, 
laws  a'  massy,  dis  am  awful  !  Oh  !  oh !  oh  !  "  and  in 
deeper  answer  is  returned  :  "  It's  gospel ;  take  my 
camp-meetin'  oath,  it's  gospel,  Jane  !" 

To  which  her  handmaid  returns  excitedly  :  "  Oh  ! 
my  poor  young  missus  !  " 

Throwing  open  the  French  windows  that  lead  to 
the  veranda,  Lilly  looks  quickly  out,  her  face  filled 
with  feminine  anxiety,  and  whispers  :  "  What's  the 
matter  ?  Is  it  burglars  ?  " 

Burglars  from  her  earliest  childhood   have  been 

o 

one  of  Lilly's  bugaboos. 
5 


66  A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT. 

"  No,  miss,  it  ain't  burglars,  it's  only  Gus! "  is  the 
reply.  In  the  moonlight  she  sees  the  mulatto  girl,  \s 
in  a  state  of  great  excitement,  listening  with  open 
mouth  and  open  eyes  to  some  extraordinary  news 
that  her  lover,  Gustavus  Duncan,  has  brought  from 
the  Ponce  de  Leon. 

"  No,  ma'm,  it  isn't  burglars,"  says  that  gentle 
man  ;  "  dar's  been  a  terr'ble  accident  down  on  de  bay." 

"An  accident?"  cries  Lilly,  and  steps  out  on  to 
the  veranda  to  hear  all  about  it. 

"Yes,  Miss  Travers ;  dar's  been  an  accident,  as  I 
befo'  explained  to  you, — on  Mr.  Remington's  steam 
yacht,  de  Runabout." 

"  Nothing's  happened,  I  hope,  to  Mr.  Reming 
ton,"  says  Lilly  quickly. 

"  No,  miss  ;  Mr.  Remington  he's  all  right.  But 
it's  de  widder." 

"  The  widow*— Mrs.  Stella  Lovejoy  ?" 

"Yes;  —  a  boat  takin'  her  to  de  yacht  was 
drowned." 

"  A  boat  drowned  !  "  gasps  Lilly  astounded  at  this 
extraordinary  statement.  Then  she  says  slowly, 
"  and  Stella  was  drowned  also  ?  "  and  there  are  tears 
in  her  eyes  as  she  thinks  of  the  beautiful  woman  she 
has  seen  in  health  and  loveliness  only  this  morning. 

"  No,  Miss  Travers  ;  she  was  saved  by  de  gal 
lantry  of  a  gent,"  remarks  Gustavus,  with  a  wave  of 
his  hand  similar  to  that  with  which  he  indicates  a 
chair  to  a  guest  of  the  Ponce  de  Leon. 

"The  noble  fellow  !  "  cries  Lilly  enthusiastically. 

"Yes;  de  Doc',  he  plumped  right  in  after  her  like 
a  porpoise,  an'  pulled  her  out,"  adds  Gus  excitedly. 

But  here  Jane  suddenly  lifts  up  her  vojce  and 


A  FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT.  67 

yells :  "  Doan'  yo'  tell  her,  Gus.  Yo'  '11  break  her 
heart.  You  doan'  know  what  yo'  's  doin'." 

But  this  makes  Lilly  very  eager — perhaps  anxious. 
She  mutters  :  "  Doc'  ? — what  doc'  ?  " 

"  Doctah  Fred  Cassadene,"  answers  Gus — and 
the  secret  is  out.  The  young  lady  grows  very  pale 
and  places  a  little  trembling  hand  on  the  railing  of 
the  veranda  to  steady  herself  as  she  whispers : 
"  Fred  there  ! —  Then  she  cries  out  suddenly : 
"  No  !  he  was  with  a  patient  on  the  Tocoi  Road. 
Impossible  !  He  was  called  away  to  a  desperate 
case  of  snake-bite." 

"  Snake-bite  ?  Ha  ha— ho  ho  !— he  he  !  "—This 
is  a  hideous  chuckle  from  between  Gus's  white 
teeth. 

"  Doan'  you  tell  her — you'll  break  her  heart  ; 
doan'  you  tell  her,"  shrieks  Jane. 

"  He  shall  tell  me  now  !  "  cries  her  mistress  in 
an  awful  voice,  and  striding  up  to  the  disconcerted 
second  man  in  the  dining-room  of  the  Ponce  de 
Leon.  Lilly  says  sternly — "  I  want  all  your  news. 
Don't  dare  prevaricate  !  " 

"  Well — "  answers  Gus  in  a  sheepish  manner 
— "  well,  de  Doc'  was  goin'  on  a  moonlight  sail 
with  de  widder." 

"And  the  — the  snake-bite— what  of  that?" 
gasps  the  girl,  a  sudden  dread  coming  into  her 
countenance. 

"  Dar  wan't  no  snake-bite.  De  widder  ain't  got 
no  snake-bite.  Doc'  Fred  was  wid  her  at  dinner 
an'  took  her  off  right  from  de  table  to  de  boat." 

"  You  are  sure  ?  " 

"  Sartin  !     Didn't  I  stan'  behin'  'em  at  dinner  to- 


68  A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT. 

day,  and  wasn't  dey  talkin'  all  de  time  'bout  de 
boat-ride  dey  was  going  to  have — and  how  de 
moonlight  was  becoming  to  widders.  Lawd  bless 
yo' !  dar  w'an't  no  case  of  snake-bite." 

"  Oh  Lawdy  !  what's  de  matter  with  yo',  Miss 
Lilly?  "  breaks  in  Jane  suddenly  upon  the  harangue, 
for  the  girl's  face  has  become  an  awful  one.  She 
has  put  her  hand  to  her  heart,  and  is  reeling  and 
staggering.  Then  she  suddenly  cries  :  "  There  was 
a  case  of  snake-bite! — the  snake  has  bitten  me  !" 

The  next  instant  she  bursts  into  a  jeering  laugh, 
for  her  words  have  struck  terror  to  her  sable  aud 
itors,  and  Jane  has  bounded  upon  a  chair  for  refuge, 
and  is  screaming  :  •"  Oh  massy  !  Is  it  a  rattler?" 
And  Gus  crying  :  "  A  snake  on  the  veranda  !  Oh, 
Lawdy  !  Lawdy  !  "  has  sprung  over  the  railing,  and 
chancing  to  land  in  a  thorn  bush  is  now  shrieking, 
"  I'se  been  stung  too  !  "  A  moment  after,  the  girl 
stops  these  demonstrations.  She  says  in  a  set,  hard 
voice,  "  The  snake  was  a  metaphor !  Don't  either 
of  you  dare  to  tell  What  has  happened  to-night !  " 
then  staggers,  and  would  fall,  did  she  not  clutch  the 
curtains  of  the  window  ;  though  to  Jane's  proffered 
assistance  and  words  of  love,  she  mutters  "  No  ! 
don't  dare  to  come  near  me  to-night  !  Go  to  your 
lover  and  tell  him  to  say  no  word  of  this — espe 
cially  to  Doctor  Cassadene  !  " 

So  passing  to  her  chamber  she  crosses  the  dining- 
room,  and  as  she  does  so  beholds  the  picture  of  old 
Hauser  Oglethorpe,  which  now  seems  to  literally 
laugh  and  chuckle  at  her,  and  this  brings  to  her 
mind  what  she  carries  in  her  pocket,  and  she  cries 
to  him:  "  For  women  who  suffer!"  and»laughs 


A   FLORIDA  ENCHANTMENT.  69 

back  at  the  canvas  man  ;  for  at  this  moment,  jeal 
ousy,  despair,  and  the  agony  of  knowing  that  the 
man  she  loves  has  lied  to  her  and  deceived  her  for 
the  smiles  of  another — has  made  this  poor  stricken 
creature  almost  insane. 

Then  getting  to  her  bedroom  she  sinks  upon  a 
chair,  and  thinks  :  "  How  can  I  endure  the  agony 
of  this  night  ? — My  God  ! — I  must  have  some  drug 
to  destroy  thought — for  a  little  while  !  " 

As  she  does  so,  she  feels  the  vial  in  her  pocket 
press  against  the  woodwork  upon  which  she  is  sitting, 
and  drawing  out  the  manuscript  and  tossing  it  on 
one  side,  by  the  mellow  light  of  her  lamp,  which  has 
been  lit  for  her  coming,  she  gazes  at  the  sparkling 
seeds  that  dance  and  flash,  roll  over  and  play,  and 
juggle  with  one  another  in  the  yellow  beams,  and 
sighs — "  If  this  would  only  take  away  my  jealous 
woman's  heart  —to  make  me  cold — indifferent — self 
ish — as  men,  our  masters,  who  torture  us  by  mak 
ing  us  love  them  !  " 

Then,  breaking  the  sealing  wax  that  surrounds 
the  glass  stopper,  she  uncorks  the  bottle,  from 
which  a  faint,  delicious  odor  comes,  and  sits  look 
ing  at  the  seeds  and  conning  over  in  her  mind 
the  marvelous  story  of  the  old  slaver,  and  quotes 
poor  Quassi,  "  Who  would  be  woman  when  can  be 
man?"  An  astounded  look  comes  into  her  eyes, 
and  she  mutters,  "  My  Heaven,  if  this  wondrous  tale 
is  true  !  If  I  took  one  and  became  a  man,  what  kind 
would  I  become  ?  an  '  out  and  outer,'  a  '  throughbred,' 
to  play  with  women — to  break  their  hearts,  to  make 
their  love  and  truth  a  curse  to  them — like  Fred 
does  me?  " 


70  A  FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT. 

Here  her  agony  becoming  too  potent,  she  stag 
gers  to  her  feet  and  totters  about  the  room  wring 
ing  her  hands  and  gasping,  "  What  is  life  without 
him — and  I  a  woman  ?  Were  I  a  man,  I  should 
love  him  no  more  !  If  I  remain  in  my  own  sex, 
he  will  come  to  me,  and  again  cajole  me  and  take 
my  feeble  female  heart  into  his  grasp,  to  juggle 
with,  until  I  forget  his  treachery — and  love  him 
again  and  so  suffer  on  and  on  so  long  as  I  live. 
NEVER  !  !  !  What  do  I  care  !  These  seeds  may 
give  me  death — but  what  is  life  without  him  ? " 

With  this — a  kind  of  ecstasy  comes  into  her  beau 
tiful  eyes  and  she  cries  "  If  it  should  be  true  !  " — and 
desperately,  as  if  not  daring  to  contemplate  what 
she  is  doing,  seizes  between  two  white  fingers,  one 
of  the  amber-colored  seeds,  and  opening  a  pair  of 
as  rosy  lips  as  were  ever  kissed  by  man,  she  gasps 
in  awful  voice,  "WHY  NOT?"  and  tosses  the  "  seed- 
of-sexual-change  "  into  her  mouth. 

Its  effect  is  horrible — appalling — it  seems  to  be 
alive — to  have  wings  and  fly  down  her  throat,  giv 
ing  her  tonsils  an  awful  twinge  as  it  passes  them, 
and  springs  straight  to  the  centres  of  her  brain. 
She  reels  and  sinks  upon  the  sofa  and  lies  there  half 
dazed,  half  stunned — electric  thrills  run  through 
her  and  make  her  muscles  tingle  and  throb  and  even 
her  bones  to  creak  under  their  subtle  waves — and 
sensations  indescribable  and  unknown  to  her  leave 
the  ether  about  her  and  become  part  of  herself — and 
others  pass  away  from  her  to  give  them  room. — 
After  a  time  her  mind  appears  to  suddenly  become 
more  logical  than  it  had  been  before,  and  her  nerves 
to  grow  stronger,  and  have  more  toughness  to  defy 


A  FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT.  /I 

sensation.  She  feels  sleepy,  not  as  if  affected  by  a 
narcotic,  but  simply  as  if  her  mind  were  easy  and 
content,  and  burdened  by  no  despairing  jealousy, 
because  she  loves  herself  better  than  anything  else 
on  earth. 

She  mutters  "  I  think  I'll  turn  in  !"  and  hastily 
undresses — no  longer  with  dainty  care  and  careful 
folding  of  garments — but  with  reckless  untidy  haste, 
tossing  her  boots  to  one  corner  of  the  room,  her 
stockings  to  another,  firing  her  garters  on  the  man 
telpiece,  and  throwing  the  other  articles  of  her  ap 
parel  in  reckless  disorder  over  floor  and  furniture. 

Then  she  springs  into  bed,  with  a  dashing  bound, 
and  rolling  herself  up  in  the  clothes  says,  "  By  Jove, 
that's  the  first  time  in  my  life  I  didn't  squint  under 
the  bed,  for  burglars  ! — Burglars  be  blowed,"  and  her 
lovely  eyes  look  astonished  at  this  remark. 

A  minute  afterwards  her  breath  becomes  long 
drawn  and  regular,  and  sleep  comes  upon  her,  but 
anyone  standing  by  her  and  looking  at  her  glorious 
wavy  dark  brown  locks  that  cover  her  pillow  would 
have  heard  her  coral  lips  murmur,  "  I'll  bet  Fred 
had  a  bang-up  time  to-night — with  that  fetching 
little  widow !  " 

A  very  quaint  and  curious  speech  to  come  from 
the  lips  of  a  jealous  maiden  about  her  lover  and  her 

rival. 

*  *  -x-  *  * 

The  next  morning  Jane  entering  her  mistress's 
chamber  somewhat  later  than  usual,  finds  her  diffi 
cult  to  awake — an  unusual  thing,  for  Lilly's  slum 
bers  are  always  of  the  lightest. 

Then  an  astonished  expression  comes  on  Jane's 


72  A  FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT. 

face  and  she  mutters :  "  Laws  a  massy !  ef  she  ain't 
snorin'. — Reckon  she  must  have  been  up  all  night 
in  a  jealous  spasm.  She  looked  like  Lady  Macbeth 
a  doin'  de  cake  walkin'  ack  last  night,  when  she 
heard  of  Doc'  Fred's  inconsequency  ! " 

So  on  tiptoe,  this  dusky  African  maiden,  who 
loves  her  mistress  with  the  faithful  love  of  a  dog, 
trips  from  the  room,  fearing  her  footfalls  will 
awaken  Lilly  Travers  to  thought  and  suffering* 

An  hour  afterwards  she  comes  in  again  to  find 
Miss  Lilly  is  still,  snoring.  Becoming  alarmed,  the 
girl  shakes  the  sleeping  figure,  and  presently  Lilly's 
eyes  open  and  gaze  upon  her  with  slow  reluctance. 

"  Why  doan'  yo'  get  up,  Miss  Lilly  ?  It's  almos' 
ten  o'clock." 

For  this  attention  she  is  greeted  with  two  very 
savage  snarls — which  astonish  her,  for  Lilly  is  usually 
a  very  sweet-tempered  girl,  even  when  her  slumbers 
are  disturbed. 

"  Yo'se  been  snorin'  too — though  I  never  heard 
yo'  do  dat  befo'  !  Please  get  up,  Miss  Lilly !  "  says 
the  persevering  handmaid. 

Then  her  mistress's  voice  comes  to  her:  "  Con 
found  you  !  You  tell  a  story — I  don't  snore  !  " 

"  Laws  !  Miss  Lilly  !  talkin'  that  way.  What 
ails  yo'  this  mornin'  ?  But  yo'  did  snore,  I  de 
clares." 

"  Well,  I  don't  believe  a  word  of  it !  "  is  the  reply. 
"  Now  go  and  fix  my  bath." 

"  And  yo'  voice  is  so  hoarse  and  coarse,  yo'd  better 
let  me  fix  yo'  a  warm  one,  yo'se  taken  a  bad 
cole.  Dis  Florida  night  air  can't  be  trusted/'  re 
marks  Jane  in  considerate  tones. 


A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT.  73 

u  No  warm  baths !  "  says  the  girl  sharply  ;  then 
she  shocks  her  servant  again,  for  she  remarks  briskly, 
"You  think  I'm  a  spring  chicken?" 

"  Oh,  Lawd  ;  how  curious  you  does  talk  !  " 

"  Perhaps  I  do,"  answers  Lilly,  with  a  contempla 
tive  smile ;  "  I  feel  a  little  peculiar  this  morning. 
I — I  believe  I  have  had  some  extraordinary  dream 
in  the  night.  I  cannot  remember  it  exactly." 
After  knitting  her  brows  in  thought  for  a  second 
or  two,  she  cries  out  in  sudden  excitement :  "  Oh, 
yes  I  do  !  Jane,  I'll  tell  you  all  about  it ; — it's  a 
corker!  Jane,  I  dreamed  last  night  I  became  a 
man  !  What  do  you  think  of  that  ?  There's  a 
funny  vision  for  you,"  says  Lilly,  and  gives  a  pleas 
ant  laugh. 

"Yes,  indeedy  ?  "  answers  Jane;  "  I'd  like  to  be 
one  myself.  That  Gus  is  driving  me  to  desperation, 
he  is," — and  would  go  on  with  melancholy  account 
of  her  wrongs,  did  not  the  smile  on  her  mistress's 
face  at  this  moment  become  a  horrified  giggle,  and 
Miss  T ravers,  with  an  astounded,  "  Well,  I'll  be 

hanged "  sink  down  among  the  bed-clothes, 

rolling  over  in  them  as  if  to  conceal  herself  from 
view. 

For  this  young  lady,  chancing  in  a  lazy  way  to 
fold  her  arms  over  her  bosom,  has  suddenly  discov 
ered,  in  place  of  the  usual  rounded  billowy  softness, 
a  massive  masculine  chest  that  would  do  honor  to 
a  Yale  rusher  ; — and  recollection,  astonishment, 
horror  and  trepidation  have  fallen  upon  her. 

"  Massy  !  what's  de  matter  with  you,  Miss  Lilly?" 
cries  her  attendant — "  sayin'  cuss  words,  too  !  Is 
yo'  out  of  yo'  head  ?  "  for  poor  Lilly  at  this  moment 


74  A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT. 

is  gasping  and  uttering  yelps  of  surprised  astonish 
ment  and  panic  terror. 

After  a  little  Miss  Travers  recollects  that  she  is 
still  alive  anyway  and  becomes  somewhat  calmer. 
She  cries  :  "  Get  out  of  the  room  !  "  in  a  voice  of 
such  deep  contralto  that  she  is  astounded  at  the 
noise  she  makes. 

"  An'  fix  yo'  bath  ?  " 

"  Yes  ;  anything — fix  my  bath."  And  her  attend 
ant  having  withdrawn  reluctantly  from  the  apart 
ment  with  exclamations  of  astonished  concern, 
Lillian  Travers  gives  one  desperate  bound  from  the 
bed  and  staggering  in  a  dazed  way  to  her  bureau, 
picks  up  the  paper  she  had  tossed  away  the  night 
before.  There  it  is — old  Hauser's  wondrous  tale, 
in  his  cramped  characters  ;  and  before  her  stands 
the  vial  with  its  three  little  miraculous  seeds  danc 
ing  in  the  yellow  sunlight  to  give  proof  that  it's  no 
hallucination  of  her  wandering  mind. 

She  gives  one  look  at  the  mirror,  staring  in  it  to 
see  if  her  face  betrays  aught  of  the  great  physical 
change  which  has  somehow  come  upon  her.  No  ; 
her  features  are  the  same — only  wondrously  ex 
cited  and  astonished,  and  containing  a  threat  of 
coarseness  in  the  near  future,  for  a  bolder  light 
seems  to  gleam  in  the  staring,  questioning  eyes  that 
look  upon  her  as  she  gasps,  "  Great  God  !  can  it  be 
possible  ?  I  am  a  man  !  "  and  sinks  down  upon 
her  knees,  a  prey  to  the  most  singular  and  varied 
sensations  that  ever  rent  a  human  frame.  For 
at  last  she  knows  the  truth  !  and  it  stuns  as  well  as 
horrifies  her.  At  times  she  thinks  another  soul  is 
inside  of  her  and  her  true  spirit  has  wandered  into 


A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT.  75 

space — but  so  perfect  a  recollection  of  the  Lillian 
Travers  of  yesterday  and  of  every  preceding  event  in 
Miss  Travers'  life  comes  home  to  her  so  clearly  that 
she  knows  she  is  the  same  spirit,  though  man  instead 
of  woman. 

After  the  first  horror  of  this  knowledge  there  comes 
an  exalted  sense  of  supremacy,  a  feeling  that  the 
world  is  now  hers  from  which  to  choose  her  amuse 
ment  and  her  career  in  life,  and  this  gives  promise  to 
her — excited  and  nervous  as  she  still  is — of  a  happy 
future.  She  turns  an  inward  gaze  upon  herself,  she 
is  apparently  well,  strong,  and  certainly  hungry — and 
sits  in  a  kind  of  dreamy  contentment  gazing  vacu 
ously  about  her. 

"  Yo'r  bath  is  ready,  Miss  Lilly,"  remarks  Jane 
and  calls  her  from  herself. 

"  I'm  so  hungry  I  think  I'll  take  my  breakfast 
first,"  says  the  putative  Miss  Travers,  for  the  first 
time  in  her  life  discovering  what  a  masculine  appe 
tite  really  is.  And  Jane  departing  on  her  errand,  her 
mistress  takes  advantage  of  her  absence  to  put  very 
safely  away  the  vial  with  its  three  precious  seeds  and 
the  curious  record  of  old  Hauser. 

This  is  hardly  done  when  Jane  steps  briskly  in 
with  the  breakfast. 

"  Ah !  That  coffee  smells  good. — Jane,  you're  a 
brick!" 

"  Miss  Lilly,  is  yo'  crazy?  "  cries  out  the  maid  to  this 
repetition  of  the  curious  language  that  has  caused 
her  so  much  astonishment  during  the  morning. 
"  'Cause  if  you  is,  I  want  to  get  out  ob  heah." 

"  Neither  crazy  nor  sick,  Jane,  but  better  than  I 
have  ever  been  before,"  remarks  her  mistress  orac- 


76  A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT. 

ularly.  "  By  the  by,  don't  you  tell  aunt  any  con 
founded  nonsense  about  what  I  have  said  to  you 
this  morning.  Here's  fifty  cents  for  you,"  and  she 
tosses  her  attendant  a  coin,  thinking,  like  most  other 
men,  that  money  is  stronger  than  sentiment. 

Then  donning  a  robe  de  chambre  she  sits  down  to 
the  smoking  breakfast,  which  Jane  has  placed  on  a 
small  table,  and  does  justice  to  it  in  a  way  that  makes 
her  handmaiden  open  her  dusky  eyes. 

After  a  little  Miss  Travers  says,  "  Jane,  get  out." 

"Get  out?  what  fo'?"  asks  her  maid,  astonished. 

"  I'm  going  to  dress  !  " 

"  Of  course,  I  always  helps  you  !  " 

"  But  you  are  going  to  do  so  no  more.  Your  fuss 
ing  would  make  me  wild.  Get  out !  " 

And  so  Jane  departs  wondering  what  crank  has 
come  upon  her  young  missus.  The  next  instant 
Lilly  begins  her  toilet,  communing  with  herself  that 
great  caution  and  self-command  must  temper  her 
conscious  possession  of  manhood.  Of  femininity, 
a  small  amount  yet  remains,  else  she  would  be  peril 
ously  near  immediate  exposure.  From  the  immedi 
ate  revelation  of  her  marvellous  transformation  she 
still  has  sufficient  womanhood  to  shrink  aghast. 
The  little  Lillian  Travers  left  in  her  thinks,  "  Only 
for  to-day  I  will  be  a  man,  to  see  what  it  is  like— 
and  then  go  back  to  my  old  self  again. — And  love 
him—  '  but  here  suddenly  her  new  nature  bursts 
forth.  u  Never  !  I'm  in  for  a  good  thing,  and  I'll 
clinch  to  it !  "  for  her  peace  of  mind  shows  her  that 
if,  as  a  woman,  she  was  entirely  engrossed  in  Fred 
Cassadene,  as  a  man  she  is  entirely  absorbed  in  self — a 
much  more  comfortable  and  contented  state  oHeeling. 


A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT.  77 

But  the  business  of  the  day  is  before  her,  and 
with  a  don't-care  gesture,  she  throws  off  the  many 
difficulties  of  the  thorny  path  into  which  she  has 
entered  and  begins  rapidly  dressing  ;  a  sudden  and 
acute  curiosity  having  come  to  her  to  test  how  it 
will  feel  to  wander  about  the  streets  and  enjoy  her 
new  sex. 

Her  toilet  is  not  an  easy  one,  and  she  anathe 
matizes  the  tight  corset  that  trammels  her  lithe 
movements  ;  and  she  finds  it  necessary  to  make  use 
of  certain  artifices  to  give  to  her  figure  even  a 
portion  of  the  beautiful,  rounded  outlines  that  had 
made  it  graceful  and  lovely  the  day  before. 

Just  as  this  is  completed,  Jane  comes  in  suddenly 
and  says : 

"  Mrs.  Stella  Lovejoy  and  Miss  Bessie  Horton 
has  jes'  been  heah ;  but  I  tole  'em  yo'  wasn't 
well." 

"  Well  ?  I  never  was  better  in  my  life.  The  girls 
haven't  gone  away,  have  they  ?  you  numbskull  !  " 
cries  Lillie  anxiously  and  savagely. 

"  They's  jes'  goin'.  I — I  didn't  'spose  you'd 
want  to  see  de  beautiful  widow,"  gasps  Jane  apolo 
getically,  remembering  the  incidents  of  the  night 
before. 

"  Beautiful  widows  are  just  in  my  line,  Janey  ! 
Skip  down-stairs  and  tell  the  girls  to  stop  at  once 
— I'll  be  with  them  in  a  minute." 

"  Yo's  out  ob  yo'  head — I  neber  saw  yo'  speak 
so  befo',  Miss  Lilly,"  cries  her  astounded  hand 
maiden. 

•"  No,  but  you  will  from  now  on  " — then  pausing 
at  her  own  rashness,  Lilly  suddenly  says  :  "  Jane,  I 


78  A  FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT. 

have  concluded  to  throw  off  care  and  forget  Doctor 
Fred  and  be  happy  without  him. — Fly  down  and 
tell  the  girls  to  remain  one  second. — Stay,  I'll  catch 
them  myself!"  and  Lilly  strides  down  hastily  to 
the  parlor  to  receive  and  inflict  new  and  wondrous 
sensations. 


BOOK  II. 
THE  BOYHOOD  OF  LILLY  TRAVERS. 


CHAPTER  VII. 

"  AH  !  NAUGHTY  BOY — WHAT  SHALL  I  CHRISTEN 

You  ? " 

SHE  swoops  down-stairs,  but  her  long,  trailing 
skirts  have  become  awkward  to  her,  who  yesterday 
in  these  same  clinging  garments,  was  the  poetry  of 
motion,  and  grace  itself.  Giving  her  trailing  jupe, 
which  at  this  moment  gets  under  her  feet,  almost 
throwing  her  down,  a  very  vicious  and  masculine 
yank,  Lilly  enters  the  parlor,  from  which  through 
the  half  open  door,  comes  the  staid  voice  of  Con- 
stantia,  mingled  with  the  more  vivacious  tones  of 
Stella  Lovejoy,  and  the  delicious  Southern  babble 
of  Bessie  Horton. 

"  I  hardly  think  she's  got  over  the  effect  of  her 
railroad  journey,"  remarks  her  relative,  apparently 
apologizing  for  her  niece's  laziness. 

"  Why,  she  was  as  bright  as  an  oriole,"  murmurs 
Miss  Bessie,  "  when  we  went  to  Vedder's  yesterday 
morning." 

"  I  have  counted    on    Miss  Travers  for  our  hop 


80  A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT. 

to-night,"  says  the  widow.  "  You  don't  think  she 
will  disappoint  me  ?  " 

"  Hardly  !  "  mutters  Constantia  grimly,  turning  her 
glasses  upon  Mrs.  Lovejoy,  and  thinking:  "  No 
wonder  Lilly  is  jealous  of  her."  As  she  says  non 
chalantly  :  "  My  niece  has  only  got  the  blues." 

"  Not  this  morning,  aunty  "  cries  Lilly,  breaking 
in  upon  this  scene.  Then  giving  Miss  Connie  a 
loving  but  careless  kiss  of  relationship,  Miss  Travers 
lifts  up  her  eyes,  and  gives  an  astonished  gasp  as 
she  gazes  upon  Stella  Lovejoy  and  Bessie  Horton, 
for  it  is  the  first  time  she  has  ever  seen  the  won 
drous  loveliness  of  women  with  masculine  eyes. 

The  two  are  in  delicious  contrast :  Bessie  looking 
like  a  lovely  wild  flower  in  the  light  muslin  dress  of 
girlhood — Stella  in  some  fleecy  creation  of  Worth's 
that  makes  her  exquisitely  developed  figure  a  series 
of  curves  of  beauty,  as  she  rises  languidly  to  receive 
Lilly's  greeting. 

"  The  blues  of  which  your  aunt  accuses  you,  seem 
to  have  changed  into  a  cold.  You're  very  hoarse, 
my  dear,"  remarks  the  beautiful  Stella. 

"  Not  half  as  hoarse  as  you  should  be,  from  your 
moonlight  ducking  last  night.  Doctor  Fred  pulled 
you  out  in  great  shape,  I  hear. — Rather  romantic,  I 
imagine,"  remarks  Lilly,  in  easy  enjoyment  of  Mrs. 
Lovejoy's  embarrassment  at  her  adventure  being 
known  to  her  rival,  for  as  such  she  regards  Miss 
Travers — especially  as  she  thinks  uneasily,  "  She  is 
not  jealous,  therefore  she  feels  sure  of  her  position 
with  Cassadene." 

"  Oh,  you  know  of  our  unfortunate  accident," 
murmurs  Stella,  and  she  extends  her  hand  to  Lilly 


A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT.  8  I 

and  then  to  stop  further  discussion  of  the  moonlight 
episode  nonchalantly  holds  up  a  luscious  rosy  mouth 
to  be  kissed,  for  she  is  one  of  those  women  who 
always  kiss  other  women. 

A  pair  of  dark  brown  eyes  gaze  into  the  radiant 
blue  ones ; — the  invitation  is  accepted  suddenly, 
ardently  ! — Lilly's  coral  lips  press  those  of  the  beauti 
ful  widow ; — a  thrill — an  ecstasy — an  electric  shock  ! 
Stella's  lovely  face  becomes  rosy  with  sudden 
blushes  ;  she  turns  away  and  sinks  into  her  chair, 
uttering  a  kind  of  lingering,  longing  sigh. 

As  for  Lilly,  though  somewhat  prepared,  the  sen 
sation  she  experiences  is  much  more  potently  soft, 
tender  and  exquisite  than  she  expected.  This  first 
kiss  of  man  to  woman. 

Her  hand  seems  to  linger  longingly,  perhaps  car 
essingly,  on  the  widow's  rounded  shoulder,  as  she 
turns  away  towards  Bessie,  who  has  cried  in  girlish 
enthusiasm  :  "  My  turn  next !  "  For  these  two  hav 
ing  known  each  other  from  childhood,  kiss  at  sight 
in  the  careless,  easy  way  peculiar  to  girls. 

At  first  Miss  Travers  seems  inclined  to  disregard 
this  demand.  She  turns  away  as  if  about  to  sit 
down,  but  Bessie's  face  is  thrust  before  hers  and  a 
wounded  voice  is  in  her  ear,  muttering — "  It  was  my 
turn  first — you  sha'n't  slight  me  altogether." 

Fighting  to  subdue  the  tender  feelings  that 
are  in  her,  Miss  Travers  grants  the  plump  little 
blonde's  demand,  and  apparently  produces  a  great 
sensation  on  that  young  lady,  for  she  ecstatically 
cries:  "  Just  one  more  !  "  and  gives  the  tall  brunette 
another  salute  that  comes  from  the  very  bottom  of  her 
heart  and  goes  on  enthusiastically,  "  Lilly,  you  are 
6 


82  A  FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT. 

the  best  kisser  I  ever  saw — boys  or  girls  ! "  then 
suddenly  pauses — for  Miss  Connie's  voice  is  heard 
in  reproving  tones  "  Bess  !  " 

Whereupon  the  maiden  stammers,  "  No,  I  don't 
mean  that !  Of  course  I  don't !  I  don't  know  what  I 
am  talking  about  !  "  and  sits  down  covered  with  rosy 
blushes. 

The  laugh  attendant  upon  this  serves  to  conceal 
the  putative  Miss  Travers'  emotions  which  are  like 
those  of  a  Romeo  after  Juliet's  first  kiss — for  if 
Stella's  salute  has  caused  rapture,  Bessie's  sweet 
lips  red  and  dewy  as  two  morning  rosebuds  have 
brought  ecstasy. 

She  sinks  into  a  chair,  muttering  "  Darling  Bessie !  " 
and  hardly  heeds  the  conversation,  which  has  fallen 
upon  the  ordinary  woman's  topics  of  the  day. 
Bessie  running  on  vivaciously  about  the  lovely  time 
she  expects  at  the  hop  this  evening,  and  Aunt  Con 
nie  giving  Lilly  a  receipt  for  colds  that  has  been 
transmitted  to  her  from  the  dark  ages. 

But  all  this  time,  Stella's  lovely  eyes,  though  she 
forces  them  to  wander  about  the  room,  return 
always  to  Lilly,  an  inquiring  and  wondering  look  in 
them.  Once  or  twice  their  glances  meet,  and  though 
the  widow's  droop  under  the  bolder  looks  of  the 
young  lady,  Lilly  gets  uneasy  herself  and  wonders 
in  a  nervous  feminine  manner,  "  Can  she  suspect?  " 
But  masculine  logic  coming  to  her  aid,  she  thinks, 
"  Pooh  !  Suspect  a  miracle  ?  As  a  little  girl  I  went 
to  school  with  her  !  " 

Then  her  eyes  turn  to  Bessie,  and  she  says  to 
herself:  "The  dear  little  girl!  Funny  I  never 
thought  her  so  lovely  before !  "  for  Bessie  a^she  sits 


A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT.  83 

prattling  away,  an  unknown  happiness  in  her  heart, 
one  pretty  foot  and  ankle  carelessly  peeping  from 
under  her  dress,  makes  a  very  lovely  picture  to 
masculine  eyes,  though  she  does  not  know  that  they 
are  upon  her. 

Shortly  after  this,  Miss  Connie  produces  a  sensa 
tion.  She  says  suddenly :  "  Lilly,  I  shall  insist  upon 
your  calling  in  a  doctor  ! " 

"  A  doctor — for  what  ?  " 

"  For  your  cold.  It  is  awful.  Your  voice  is 
hoarser  than  I  have  ever  known  it." 

"  Perhaps  you  had  better  send  for  Doctor  Cassa- 
dene.  He  must  have  finished  his  case  of  snake-bite 
by  this  time,"  remarks  the  supposed  invalid  glancing 
at  Mrs.  Lovejoy  maliciously  and  rather  enjoying 
teasing  a  pretty  woman  after  the  taste  of  average 
masculinity. 

At  this  the  widow  blushes  and  looks  uncomfort 
able,  and  Lilly,  eyeing  her,  knows  that  Doctor  Fred 
has  told  her  of  the  lie  that  he  had  written,  and  were 
it  last  night,  she  would  hate — hate — HATE  her  ;  but 
now,  this  morning,  noting  the  wondrous  loveliness 
of  her  former  rival  she  thinks  :  "  No  wonder  Fred 
is  spoons  on  that  catchey  Stella — George  !  what  an 
ankle  !  "  sneaking  a  peep  at  a  delicious  little  boot 
that  is  making  her  heart  beat  very  rapidly. 

Then  she  continues  aloud  :  "  Of  course  I  shall  see 
Doctor  Fred  to-day.  He  is  going  to  take  me  to  the 
'  hop  '  this  evening,"  and  astonishes  herself  by  being 
annoyed  because  she  sees  she  has  planted  a  dagger 
in  the  widow's  heart,  and  wonders,  "  What  the  deuce 
can  Stella  see  to  like  in  Fred,  anyway  ?  I  should 
think  I  would  be  more  in  her  style." 


84  A   FLORIDA  ENCHANTMENT. 

A  moment  after  the  visitors  rise  to  go. 

As  they  shake  hands,  Doctor  Cassadene  is  an 
nounced  and  enters  to  receive  two  fearful  shocks  to 
his  manly  vanity — which  as  usual  in  his  sex  is  very 
great  and  exceedingly  touchy. 

Lilly  shakes  hands  nonchalantly  with  the  Doctor, 
and  says  :  "  How  do,  Fred  !  "  in  a  careless  way  that 
startles  them  all,  for  though,  she  intends  it  to  be  sim 
ply  the  welcome  of  one  man  to  another,  it  has  given 
both  Bessie  and  the  widow  a  sudden  intimation, 
judging  from  a  feminine  standpoint,  that  she  is 
engaged  to  the  Doctor,  and  intends  in  this  way  to 
announce  her  coming  union  to  the  handsome  man 
who  is  standing  before  them.  He  responds  to  her 
salutation  in  an  uneasy,  embarrassed  way,  and  is  then 
introduced  to  Miss  Constantia  who  receives  him 
rather  frigidly. 

A  moment  after  Bessie,  having  made  her  adieux, 
turns  to  the  door,  and  would  go  on  her  way  alone, 
but  Lilly,  actuated  by  some  sudden  emotion,  says 
promptly :  "  Let  me  escort  you,"  offering  her  arm 
with  the  grace  of  an  avenue  Adonis. 

This  Bessie  takes  very  readily,  giving  her  escort 
quite  a  shock  as  she  remarks  :  "  What  an  unusual 
treat !  Why,  Lilly,  you're  as  attentive  as  if  you 
were  a — a  gentleman,  this  morning." 

Mrs.  Lovejoy  is  about  to  follow  them.  The  Doc-" 
tor  gallantly  says  :  "  Let  me  put  you  in  the  car 
riage,"  and  gets  one  of  the  shocks  of  his  life. 

For  actuated  by  an  unknown,  yet  potent  feeling, 
the  widow  suddenly  returns : 

"  Lilly  has  another  arm  at  liberty — she  will  do  for 
both  me  and  Bess  !  "  and  slips  her  pretty  gloved 


A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT.  85 

hand  under  Miss  T  ravers'  arm,  who  looks  back  at 
Fred  with  mocking  eyes,  as  she  takes  the  two  beau 
ties  out  to  their  carriage. 

They  are  at  the  gate,  and  Stella  says  laughingly : 
"  I  must  have  another  one  of  your  pretty  kisses, 
Lilly !  " 

"  And  I,  too  !  "  cries  Bessie,  not  to  be  outdone. 

Whereupon  the  putative  young  lady  kindly  ac 
commodates  them  both  with  an  enthusiasm  that 
astonishes  them,  and  putting  them  blushing,  laugh 
ing  and  very  beautiful,  into  their  carriage,  would 
lift  her  hat  if  she  had  one  on  her  head,  after  the 
manner  of  a  Fifth  Avenue  swell,  as  they  drive  away. 

Then  she  suddenly  says  to  herself  in  an  affrighted, 
reproving  yet  reflective  manner :  "  Ah,  naughty 
boy!  "  and  gazing  at  her  shadow  on  the  sunlight 
of  the  walk  murmurs,  "  I  wonder  what  I'll  christen 
you  ?"  and  looks  complacently  on  herself,  for  verily 
the  joys  of  young  manhood  are  exceeding  great  ! 
A  moment  after  she  gives  out  a  low,  affrighted 
"  Wh-e-w  !  if  Aunt  Connie  only  knew  she'd  go  out 
of  her  head  !  "  then  turns  with  merry  laugh  towards 
the  house. 

But  at  the  threshold  a  fearful  scowl  comes  over  her 
mobile  features.  She  hesitates  and  mutters  :  "  I  sup 
pose  Fred'll  want  to  kiss  me.  My  heaven,  how 
sickening  !  "  and  a  shudder  runs  over  her.  Then 
her  face  grows  very  determined  and  she  cogitates: 
"  If  he  does  I'll  fix  him  !  "  and  with  this  threat  to 
her  own  dear  sweetheart  of  yesterday,  she  strides 
into  the  house  whistling  in  easy  abandon,  "  The 
girl  I  left  behind  me  "  ! 

A  very  few  bars  of  her  music  brings  Miss  Connie 


86  A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT. 

to  her.  That  outraged  spinster  appearing  on  the 
portico  whispers,  "  Whistling,  Lilly?"  in  a  horrified 
tone,  next  remarks  severely,  "  What's  come  to  you 
this  morning? — Your  manners  have  been  some 
thing  awful  for  a  young  lady.  Now  go  to  your 
fiance — I  hope  he  has  not  heard  you  whistling — it 
would  be  quite  a  shock  to  him." 

Taking  her  aunt's  advice  the  late  Miss  Travers 
steps  into  the  parlor  where  Doctor  Frederick  sits 
alone  and  sulking.  Mrs.  Lovejoy  has  wounded  his 
pride  ;  besides,  this  young  gentleman  has  some 
how  an  intuition  that  his  sweetheart  knows  of  his 
defection  on  the  night  before,  and  that  he  has  an 
uncomfortable  interview  before  him. 

Such  ideas  are  soon  driven  from  his  mind.  Lilly 
says  in  easy  nonchalance  :  "  Well,  old  boy,  did  you 
have  a  high  old  time  last  evening,  with  that  pretty 
widow?"  and  nods  her  head  in  the  direction  of  the 
departed  Stella. 

"  Yes,  you  see —      "  gasps  Fred,  astounded. 

"  Oh,  her  beauty  is  excuse  enough.  And  how's 
the  patient  with  the  snake-bite  ?  Dead,  I  presume — 
most  of  your  patients  usually  die." 

"  If  you  will  let  me  explain,  Lilly,"  mutters  the 
Doctor. 

"  Oh,  no  need  of  that,"  says  the  putative  young 
lady.  "  I  know  about  how  it  is  myself !  "  and  with 
these  extraordinary  words,  she  flops  into  a  roomy 
chair,  assuming  such  an  easy  and  mannish  attitude 
that  her  lover  stares  at  her  in  astonished  silence. 

"  What  time  are  you  going  to  take  me  to  the  ball 
— Eh  ?  Why  don't  you  wake  up,  Freddie,  and 
answer  !  " 


A  FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT.  8/ 

But  Cassadene's  love,  like  most  men's,  is  increased 
by  the  lady's  coldness.  He  says :  "  You  speak  to 
me  that  way.  You  refuse  to  hear  my  apologies 
— my  excuses.  We  have  been  parted  twelve  long 
hours,  and  as  yet  not  one  kiss,  my  darling  !  "  and 
approaches  her  with  outstretched  arms,  to  play 
the  engaged  and  ardent  lover,  but  finds  her  very 
coy. 

She  artfully  eludes  several  strategic  moves  on  his 
part,  and  then,  he  being  on  the  point  of  victory, 
suddenly  cries  out  in  a  desperate  tone :  "  Not  a  kiss, 
Fred,  until  you  have  explained  the  snake-bite." 

"  My  heaven  !  "  he  bursts  out. — "  How  can  I  ex 
plain  it,  except  that  after  writing  you  that  note,  just 
as  I  was  mounting  to  gallop  to  my  patient,  a  man 
rode  up  to  the  hotel  and  told  me  that  there  was  no 
need  of  my  going  there.  The  man  had  not  been 
bitten  by  a  snake — it  was  simply  the  scratch  of  a 
thorn  brush  in  the  swamp  that  he  had  supposed  the 
stroke  of  a  water  moccasin,  and  had  nearly  died 
from  fear,  not  poison." 

"  Ah,  that  was  the  reason  !  "  mutters  Lilly,  as 
tounded  at  this  audacious  and  ingenious  lie,  which 
had  been  carefully  prepared  by  Doctor  Fred  in  case 
of  his  perfidy  being  discovered.  She  is  thinking,  "  I 
wonder  if  I'll  ever  learn  to  fib  in  that  glorious  man 
ner,"  when  she  finds  herself  in  his  arms,  and  then 
kiss  ! — kiss  / — K-I-S-S  ! — the  agony  has  begun  ! 

She  groans  inwardly,  and  struggling  turns  so  savage 
and  scowling  a  face  over  the  Doctor's  shoulder  that 
could  he  see  it  despair  would  be  upon  him.  She 
wants  to  clutch  the  brawny  throat  in  front  of  her, 
and  choke  it  with  all  her  newly  acquired  muscle ,- 


88  A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT. 

but  the  cigar-perfumed  mustache  is  pressed  again 
and  again  upon  her  lips  that  now  shrink  from  it  for 
the  first  time. 

Then  a  sudden  consciousness  that  she  must  play 
her  part,  in  order  to  preserve  her  secret,  coming  to 
her,  she  tries  to  be  the  Lilly  Travers  of  old,  but  does 
not  do  it  very  well,  for  a  moment  after  he  turns  from 
her  muttering  :  "  Your  kisses  are  cold — cold — cold  !  " 

Then  her  very  iciness  adding  to  his  flame,  he 
cries  out  desperately,  "  Can  you  doubt  the  love  of 
the  man  who  would  die  for  you  ?  Your  promised 
husband  !  "  and  goes  into  many  other  masculine 
rhapsodies  and  extravagances  that  would  have 
seemed  lovely  to  her  but  twelve  hours  before,  but 
now  make  her  laugh. 

As  she  bursts  into  a  sneering  snicker,  he  becomes 
very  angry  and  growls  at  her  :  "  Not  only  coldness, 
but  derision  !  "  next  goes  on  in  a  heart-broken  voice, 
putting  her  into  momentary  panic  as  he  mutters, 
"  Your  conduct  is  very  unnatural." 

"  Unnatural  ?  How  ?  "  gasps  the  girl.  "  You 
were  indifferent  to  me  last  night.  Why  shouldn't 
I  be  indifferent  to  you  to-day  ?  " 

"  Some  women  might,  but  not  the  girl  I  worship 
— the  girl  I  adore,"  he  returns  pathetically;  and 
there  are  real  tears  in  the  great  big  flirt's  eyes,  for 
her  indifference  makes  him  desperate. 

Then  he  frightens  her  terribly  as  he  cries  :  "  You 
are  not  the  Lilly  Travers  of  yesterday." 

At  this,  fearing  that  perhaps  he  may  suspect  a 
miracle — she  is  delighted  when  Aunt  Connie  makes 
her  appearance. 

"  Before  you  go,  Doctor,"  says  Miss  Constantia, 


A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT.  89 

"  I  want  you  to  examine  Lilly's  throat  and  chest. 
You  notice  how  hoarse  she  is  ?  " 

"  Examine  me  /  "  gasps  her  niece,  all  in  a  tremble. 

"  My  heavens  !  "  exclaims  Fred,  suddenly  ;  for 
he  has  been  too  agitated  and  excited  up  to  this 
moment  to  note  anything  but  his  sweetheart's  in 
difference.  "  What  a  cold  you  have  !  Allow  me." 

But  she  draws  back  from  him  with  an  affrighted 
"  No  !  no  !  " — and  shudders  with  burning  panic 
blushes. 

"  As  your  physician,  my  dearest,"  remarks  the 
doctor  tenderly. 

"  This  is  absurd  delicacy  in  such  a  case,"  says  her 
aunt  ;  but  to  Lilly's  relief,  Doctor  Fred  remarks, 
after  looking  at  her  attentively :  "  I  do  not  think 
her  cold  is  at  all  serious."  Then  he  adds  rather 
maliciously  :  "  I  am  sure  from  the  way  she  whistled 
a  few  moments  ago  that  her  lungs  are  not  affected, 
and  as  she  seems  to  be  rather  anxious  to  avoid  my 
attentions  both  as  physician  and  lover  this  after 
noon,  I  shall  not  force  them  upon  her." 

For  this  he  gets  such  a  heartfelt,  grateful  and 
almost  loving  "  Thank  you  "  from  his  fiancee,  that 
joy  flies  into  his  eyes,  and  Miss  Connie,  having  de 
parted  with  a  sniff  of  contempt  at  her  niece's  absurd 
prudery,  Doctor  Fred  falls  to  again  rapturously 
and  forces  the  putative  Miss  Travers  to  undergo 
some  most  tender  and  horrible  caresses  at  his  hands. 
For  she  is  desperately  afraid  of  his  physician's  prac 
tised  eye  giving  him  some  suspicion  of  the  extraor 
dinary  change  that  has  taken  place  in  her,  and  tries 
to  play  the  sweetheart  and  the  woman  who  has 
parted  from  him  but  yesterday. 


90  A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT. 

"  Ah,  now  you  are  my  own  once  more  ! "  He  has 
seized  her  and  is  lavishing  kisses  upon  her.  "  You 
have  missed  me,  haven't  you,  darling  ?  A  little 
jealous,  eh,  but  she  couldn't  be  long  angry  with 
her  Freddie,  could  she  ?  "  Then  he  cries  out,  "  My 
precious  one,  you  look  pale  and  unlike  yourself. 
Come  to  the  light."  Upon  this  Lilly  tries  to  droop 
her  eyelids  in  the  old,  submissive  way,  which  is  for 
tunate,  as  they  veil  two  very  savage  looking  optics 
as  he  leads  her  to  one  of  the  open  French  windows 
of  the  room. 

"  Now,  look  me  in  the  eyes  !  " — he  playfully 
chucks  her  under  the  chin.  "  You  have  been  griev 
ing  for  me — jealous  and  all  that  foolishness,  my  pet ! 
(kiss)  Those  lovely  shadows  below  your  delicious 
eyes  mean  that — don't  they,  my  sweetheart  ?  " 

"  YOU  BET  THEY  DON'T  ! ! !  "  is  the  fierce  rejoinder 
spoken  in  so  savage  a  whisper  that  he  staggers  back. 

After  a  moment,  however,  attributing  it  still  to 
some  remnants  of  the  aforesaid  jealousy  he  renews 
the  attack,  and  suddenly  gives  her  a  fearful  shock,  for 
he  says :  "  Darling,  you  must  name  our  wedding  day ! " 

"  Not  now  !  For  God's  sake,  not  now  !  "  she 
stutters. 

"  Well,  then,  my  angel,  to-morrow — you  must  tell 
me  when  you  will  make  me  the  happiest  man  in 
Florida. — Don't  forget — I  will  call  for  you  at  half- 
past  eight  this  evening."  So,  with  a  few  more  en 
dearments  which  yesterday  she  would  have  loved 
but  to-day  she  hates,  Doctor  Fred  goes  away  in  a 
very  happy  and  contented  mind,  remarking  to  him 
self  sotto  voce  :  "  The  widow  may  cut  up  rough,  but 
Lilly  is  mine  anyway." 


A  FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT.  9! 

And  she  stands  staring  after  him  wondering  to 
herself  : 

"  How  did  I  endure  his  suffocating  and  nauseating 
kisses?  O-o-ugh  !  Name  the  wedding  day?  This 
is  the  deuce  of  a  joke  on  Fred  ! — If  he  knew?  Ha  ! 
ha  !  ha  !— ho  !  ho  !  ho  !— he  !  he  !  he  !  " 

These  are  such  masculine  guffaws  that  Aunt  Con 
nie  runs  out  upon  the  veranda  where  she  is  standing 
and  asks  her  very  savagely  if  she  is  crazy  ! 


CHAPTER    VIII. 

THE  HOP  AT  THE  PONCE  DE  LEON. 

"  ANOTHER  thing  I  will  tell  you,"  continues  Miss 
Constantia,  after  this  outburst  is  over, — "  is  that  you 
do  not  go  to  the  hop  this  evening." 

"  Not  to  the  hap  ? "  remarks  Lilly  piteously, 
thinking  of  how  lovely  Stella  and  Bessie  will  look 
arrayed  for  that  entertainment. 

"  Not  with  that  cold." 

"  I  am  going,  cold  or  no  cold.  Besides,  my  voice 
is  much  better,"  and  she  attempts  by  raising  her 
vocal  pitch  to  give  herself  some  of  the  tones  of  yes 
terday  that  made  her  voice  so  liquid,  brilliant  and 
beautiful. 

"  Well,  anyway,"  remarks  Miss  Constantia,  "  you 
are  not  going  to  the  ball  in  a  low-neck  dress  ;  with 
that  cold  a  decollete"  gown  would  be  death  !  I  know 
your  Parisian  gowns — and  I  don't  care  if  you  have 
a  pretty  neck  and  shoulders." 

This  is  a  very  pleasant  suggestion  to  Lilly,  who 


92  A  FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT. 

has  been  in  somewhat  of  a  quandary  as  to  what  will 
be  the  best  thing  to  wear  on  this  occasion  for  the 
more  effectual  concealment  of  deficiencies. 

"  Very  well,  auntie,"  she  says  dutifully  ;  "  I  think 
I'll  wear  my  black  lace  robe,  brightened  up  with 
flowers  of  some  kind.  It  is  quite  high  enough  at 
the  throat  to  cover  the  trouble.  Now,  a  favor  to 
me — you  must  go  with  me,  you  dear  old  auntie,  and 
play  chaperon  this  evening." 

"  In  my  day,"  remarks  Miss  Constantia  severely, 
"  a  girl  did  not  need  a  chaperon  when  she  went  with 
the  man  whom  she  was  going  to  marry.  I  am  down 
on  these  foreign  notions  ;  but  if  it  will  give  you 
any  pleasure  for  me  to  go  with  you,  I  shall  be 
delighted.  Perhaps  Major  Horton  will  be  there 
also." 

"  Of  course  he  will,"  cries  Lilly.  "  He  must  be 
there  with  his  daughter." 

At  this  the  old  lady's  eyes  twinkle  eagerly,  for 
Miss  Constantia  Oglethorpe  has  a  very  tender  spot 
in  her  time-worn  heart  for  the  dashing  major  of  the 
passed-away  Confederacy. 

"  Very  well,"  says  the  niece  shortly  ;.  "  that  is  set 
tled,"  and  feels  relieved,  for  she  knows  that  her 
aunt's  presence  will  be  certain  safety  to  her  from 
any  lover-like  attentions  that  Fred  may  feel  dis 
posed  to  inflict  upon  her  during  the  journey  to  and 
from  the  entertainment. 

Half  an  hour  after  this  Lilly  goes  for  a  drive, 
which  she  enjoys  immensely,  and  coming  home  en 
thusiastically  cries  out :  "  I  never  thought  there  were 
so  many  beautiful  women  in  the  world  before  !  " 
and  goes  into  such  rhapsodies  over  the  ladies  of  St. 


A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT.  93 

Augustine  whom  she  has  seen  upon  the  streets, 
making  such  wild  remarks  about  well-turned  ankles, 
beautiful  figures,  lovely  eyes,  and  drooping  glances 
— that  her  aunt  gazes  at  her  astounded  ;  till  at  last, 
upon  her  excitedly  suggesting  that  she  has  already 
gotten  up  one  or  two  flirtations  with  beauties  that 
passed  her  on  the  street,  Miss  Constantia  raises 
up  her  voice  in  horror  and  shrieks  :  "  What's  the 
matter  with  you  to-day  ?  Are  you  going  crazy  ?  I 
never  heard  such  talk  from  a  girl  before  !  " — which 
frightens  the  late  Miss  Travers  and  makes  her  very 
demure  until  she  goes  up-stairs  to  dress  for  the  com 
ing  hop. 

In  her  room  she  has  an  awful  spasm  of  bashfulness 
under  the  hands  of  the  young  lady  hair-dresser  who 
comes  from  one  of  the  hotels  to  arrange  her  beauti 
ful  brown  tresses,  as  well  as  several  vigorous  contests 
with  Jane,  who  makes  a  number  of  attempts  in  her 
good-hearted,  negro  way  to  try  to  lace  her  young 
missus'  corset  and  arrange  her  foot-gear. 

But  Lilly,  to  her  horror,  now  discovers  that  dur 
ing  the  day  her  feet  have  apparently  been  growing 
larger,  and  the  dainty  things  that  had  fitted  her 
so  snugly  but  yesterday  are  all  too  small  for  her 
rapidly  developing  extremities.  So  on  the  pretext 
that  her  black  slippers,  the  only  ones  she  can  wear 
with  the  dress  selected  for  the  evening,  are  shabby, 
she  gets  Jane  out  of  the  way,  by  sending  her  with  a 
note  to  an  Alcazar  shoe-store.  From  where,  fortu 
nately  having  found  it  open,  the  maid  returns  with  a 
pair  of  slippers  that  at  least  are  comfortable,  though 
they  are  not  so  pleasing  to  the  eye  as  those  that  had 
formerly  adorned  her  mistress's  fairy  feet. 


94  A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT. 

The  careful  arrangement  of  her  toilet  takes  so 
much  time  that  she  hears  Fred's  voice  in  the  hall 
below  before  she  descends,  and  gives  a  little  grin  as 
she  mutters:  "  He  won't  find  me  changed  in  the 
matter  of  keeping  him  waiting.  I  am  feminine  at 
present  in  that  respect  anyway ;  "  and  so  swoops 
down-stairs  to  do  her  best  this  evening  to  represent 
Miss  Lilly  Travers. 

Miss  Connie,  having  the  major  in  her  mind,  is 
even  slower  than  her  niece  with  her  toilet,  and  Lilly 
finds  herself  alone  in  the  parlor.  She  glances  out. 

Doctor  Fred  is  standing  on  the  veranda  enjoy 
ing  his  after-dinner  cigar.  He  looks  so  handsome 
in  his  evening  dress  and  light  overcoat  that  the 
late  Miss  Travers  suddenly  thinks :  "  I  wonder 
how  I  would  appear  in  such  a  rig?  "  and  then  pauses 
abashed  at  the  thought,  for  this  is  the  first  time  that 
the  idea  of  a  masculine  costume  has  entered  her 
head. 

A  second  later,  the  Doctor  has  tossed  away  his 
beloved  weed  and  turned  to  the  girl  whose  apparent 
indifference  to  him  has  made  him  all  the  more  eager 
for  her  society.  Coming  slyly  behind  her,  he  gives 
her  an  ardent  kiss  and  whispers,  "  How  beautiful  !  " 

"  Then,"  she  says,  drawing  away — "  I  wish  to 
impress  upon  you  the  important  fact,  old  fellow, 
that  lace  is  the  easiest  thing  in  the  world  to  rumple, 
so  please  keep  at  a  respectful  distance  or  I  shall  be  a 
sight  to  behold." 

"  Very  well,"  sighs  the  Doctor ;  "  I  will  not  de 
stroy  so  lovely  a  toilet."  Then  he  remarks  :  "  I  am 
gratified  to  see  that  you  are  beginning  to  regard  my 
wishes,  Lilly,  about  exposing  to  the  chill  weather 


A  FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT.  95 

and — well,  to  other  men's  eyes — your  bewitching 
shoulders  and  arms.  I  do  not  mind  other  men's 
sweethearts  being  dressed  that  way,  but  I  want  my 
own  dear  love's  dress  high — even  to  the  throat." 

"  If  it  pleases  you,"  grumbles  Lilly,  "respect  it, 
— and  don't  rumple  it." 

"So  I  will, — going  to  the  ball,"  says  the  Doctor; 
"but  coming  home  " — he  gives  a  longing  sigh. 

"  I  have  provided  for  that,"  remarks  Miss  Travers 
archly ;  and  she  points  to  Miss  Connie,  now  enter 
ing  the  door  arrayed  in  her  best  black  silk. — "  Be 
hold  my  chaperon  !  "  at  which  her  sweetheart  be 
comes  very  sulky  and  she  thinks  she  hears  him 
swear  under  his  breath. 

A  few  seconds  after  they  are  rolling  away  towards 
the  Ponce  de  Leon.  As  the  carriage  leaves  the 
shell-road  to  travel  over  the  oasis  of  asphalt  in  the 
centre  of  the  town,  the  conversation,  which  has  lan 
guished,  becomes  more  rapid,  and  here  Miss  Lilly 
brings  rapture  to  Fred's  heart. 

She  remarks  sententiously  :  "You  know  the  mis 
erable  dearth  of  men  at  all  watering-place  hops, — I 
presume  there  will  be  fewer  of  these  masculine  dei 
ties  here  than  farther  north." 

"  Oh,  don't  fear,"  remarks  her  fiance"  ;  "  you  will 
have  plenty  of  partners  to  haul  you  about."  Then 
he  continues:  "I  by  no  means  approve  of  young 
ladies  dancing  with  every  man  they  meet  at  such 
public  assemblies." 

"  Neither  do  I,"  says  Lilly,  and  gives  her  sweet 
heart  a  sudden  rapture,  for  she  whispers  :  "  Fred, 
I  have  determined  to  give  the  ladies  a  treat  this 
evening." 


96  A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT. 

"  What  do  you  mean  ?  " 

"  I'm  going  to  dance  only  with  girls.  Will  that 
please  you  ?" 

"  Please  me,  darling  ! "  and  he  gives  her  hand  in 
the  convenient  darkness  a  tender  squeeze.  "  You 
will  dance  with  no  men  this  evening  ?  " 

"With  none,"  answers  the  girl  determ'inedly ; 
whereupon  Miss  Connie,  awaking  from  a  meditatian 
on  her  ex-major  of  the  Confederacy,  remarks  sud 
denly  : 

"  Lilly,  don't  talk  such  nonsense.  It  is  perfectly 
unnatural  for  girls  to  dance  with  each  other,  when 
good-looking,  able-bodied  fellows  are  about." 

"  Very  well,  aunt ;  to-night  I  am  going  to  be  un 
natural,"  says  her  niece  prophetically. 

Then  amid  flashing  lights,  the  hum  of  voices,  the 
babble  of  fountains  and  cadence  of  the  distant  or 
chestra  they  roll  into  the  covered  driveway  of  the 
Ponce  de  Leon. 

While  Doctor  Cassadene  is  carefully  assisting 
Miss  Connie  out  of  the  carriage,  Lilly  quietly 
opens  the  door  and  steps  out  on  the  other  side, 
agilely  dodging  a  team  which  is  driving  up  after 
them,  and  thinking  with  delight,  "  I'm  taking  care 
of  myself  just  like  a  man  !  " 

"  You  didn't  wait  for  my  assistance,"  remarks 
Fred,  biting  his  mustache  in  annoyance  as  he 
sees  her  performance. 

"  No.  I  am  trying  to  accustom  myself  to  doing 
without  it." 

Unheeding  her  significant  reply,  a  moment  after 
he  is  by  her  side  whispering:  "You  are  very  unkind, 
but  I  forgive  you,"  and  offering  Jiis,arm,  which  the 


A   FLORIDA    ENCHANTMENT.  97 

circumstances  of  the  case  compel  her  to  accept, 
he  escorts  her  and  Miss  Connie  up  to  the  second 
floor.  Next  remarking  :  "  Mrs.  Lovejoy  has  placed 
her  suite  of  apartments  at  your  disposition  and  that 
of  some  of  her  other  lady  friends,  for  a  dressing 
room.  I'll  be  waiting  for  you  when  you  come  out," 
he  departs.  Then  before  she  even  has  a  chance  to 
hesitate,  Lilly  finds  herself  in  this  Holy  of  Holies  of 
the  fair  sex,  this  temple  where  the  finishing  touches 
are  placed  upen  feminine  loveliness  in  supposed 
seclusion  from  the  profaning  eyes  of  man. 

For  one  short  moment  she  is  abashed  and  would 
retreat  and  steps  hurriedly  back  upon  Miss  Connie's 
foot  ;  whereupon  that  maiden,  who  is  immediately 
behind  her,  remarks  savagely  :  "  Lilly  !  My  toes  ! 
Can't  you  bear  your  Frederick's  absence  for  one 
moment?  What  are  you  running  after  him  now 
for  ?  " 

This  attack  brings  her  to  herself,  and  remember 
ing  that  eternal  vigilance  means  safety  from  discov 
ery,  the  late  Miss  Travers,  assuming  all  the  femi 
nine  airs,  graces  and  coquetry  that  have  been  left 
to  her  from  yesterday,  though  awfully  self-conscious 
and  somewhat  awkward,  strides  into  this  conglom 
eration  of  subdued  laughter,  tumbled  wraps  on  sofas 
and  chairs,  flowers,  perfumes,  flashing  eyes,  lovely 
lips ;  black,  brown  and  golden  heads ;  necks  and 
bosoms  of  snow,  gleaming  arms,  shining  shoulders 
and  radiant  faces,  in  lovely  abandon  and  charming 
disarray.  A  scene  once  familiar  and  devoid  of 
charm  to  her,  but  now  dazing,  disconcerting  and 
maddening  in  its  allurements. 

"  Help  me  off  with  my  wraps,  Lilly,  that's  a  good 
7 


98  A  FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT. 

girl,"  says  Miss  Connie;  "what  are  you  gazing  about 
in  that  wild  way  for — one  would  think  you'd  never 
been  at  a  ball  before  !  "  She  forces  herself  to  pay 
her  aunt  this  attention,  as  it  gives  her  a  chance  to 
collect  her  thoughts  that  have  been  driven  wool 
gathering,  if  not  worse,  by  the  enchanting  scene 
about  her. 

Then,  her  aunt  made  presentable,  she  turns  her 
attention  to  herself,  and  has  just  thrown  off  her 
cloak,  when  Mrs.  Lovejoy's  maid  offers  her  assist 
ance  to  remove  her  overshoes. 

She  waves  the  girl  off  almost  rudely,  remarking  : 
"  I  can  attend  to  myself,  thank  you  ;  "  and  sitting 
down,  adjusts  her  slippers  in  a  bashful,  diffident,  but 
apparently  awkward  manner,  and  hears  a  muttered 
remark  from  some  lady  in  the  crowd  :  "  I  thought 
you  said  Lilly  Travers  had  a  small  foot !  " 

This  gives  her  a  flutter;  she  thinks:  "  What  a 
gawk  I  must  look  in  this  attire  now !  My  heavens ! 
— if  they  discover — 

This  idea  is  so  horrible  that  she  turns  pale  and 
would  fly  from  the  room,  did  not  a  pair  of  soft, 
white,  robust  arms  encircle  her  waist,  and  Stella's 
radiant  face  look  over  her  shoulder,  and  Stella's  blue 
eyes  look  into  hers,  and  Stella's  red  lips  come  very 
near  to  hers,  as  the  widow  whispers  :  "  Delighted 
you  have  come.  I  have  been  looking  for  you  every 
where,  dear  Lilly  !  You  are  going  to  dance  ?  " 

"  Well,  rather  !  "  remarks  the  late  Miss  Travers, 
so  enthusiastically  and  determinedly  that  for  a  mo 
ment  Mrs.  Lovejoy  is  startled. 

"You  are  devoted  to  dancing?"  she  murmurs, 
drooping  her  eyes. 


A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT.  99 

"  Yes — devoted  enough  to  dance  with  a  woman  !  " 
answers  Lilly  craftily,  "  if  you  will  let  me.  You 
know  how  scarce  men  are  here.  To-night  I  am 
going  to  devote  myself  to  your — to  our  sex.  Will 
you  dance  with  me  ?" 

"Y-e-s!"  sighs  the  widow.  Then  she  says  sud 
denly,  her  eyes  beaming  brilliantly  :  "  Such  devotion 
to  our  sex  should  be  rewarded — you  shall  have  two" 
and  leaves  Lilly  delighted  ;  for  though  not  now 
jealous  of  Fred's  attentions  to  Mrs.  Lovejoy,  she 
has  suddenly  become  worried  at  Mrs.  Lovejoy's 
fondness  for  the  Doctor. 

"  I  wonder  if  I  could  not  cut  Fred  out — why 
shouldn't  I?  I  believe  I  could,  if  she  only  knew," 
thinks  Lilly  and  utters  a  playful  but  malicious 
laugh. 

The  next  instant  the  widow  is  obliterated  from 
her  heart.  Miss  Connie  whispers,  "  Why  don't  you 
help  that  poor  child  with  her  shoes  ?  "  and  with 
throbbing  pulse  she  gazes  at  Miss  Bessie  Horton, 
who  in  charming  disarray  is  seated  upon  a  chair  in 
the  corner  of  the  room  coquettishly  struggling  with 
a  satin  slipper — and  making  too  bewitching  a  pict 
ure  for  masculine  eyes. 

Unmindful  of  torn  laces  and  feminine  screams  the 
late  Miss  Travers  forces  her  way  through  the  crowd 
of  indignant  beauty  and  is  beside  her  love  of  loves. 

As  Lilly  gains  Miss  Horton's  side  that  young  lady 
conquers  her  foot-gear. 

"  I  have  been  gazing  at  you  for  the  last  five  min 
utes,  and  you  haven't  even  noticed  me,  Lil,"  mut 
ters  Bessie,  anger  in  her  tones  and  pique  in  her 
voice.  Then  she  says  inquiringly:  "Just  look — 


IOO  A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT. 

Don't  you  think  my  slippers  match  my  dress  beau 
tifully  ?  "  Casting  her  eyes  down,  the  putative  Miss 
Travers  is  enthralled  and  whispers,  "  You  have  the 
prettiest  feet,  Bess,  in  the  world."  And  so  they  are, 
this  evening,  arrayed  in  the  deficate  hosiery  and 
fairy  slippers  of  a  toilette  de  bal. 

"  I  didn't  ask  about  the  feet,  I  asked  about  my 
slippers  !  "  pouts  Bess. 

"  You're  altogether  too  lovely  for  anything ! " 
cries  the  late  Miss  Travers  overcome. 

"  I'm  delighted  you  think  I'm  all  right,"  answers 
Miss  Horton  easily,  and  a  moment  after  asks  :  "  Did 
Doctor  Cassadene  come  with  you  ?  "  perhaps  a  little 
too  eagerly.  "  He  is  going  to  dance  with  me." 

"  Yes  !  "  says  Lilly  snappily.  Then  she  remarks 
contemplatively :  "  You  must  not  give  him  any 
more  dances." 

"  Why  not — if  he  asks  for  them  ?  He  is  very 
handsome,  and  men  are  very  scarce  " — this  last  with 
a  little  defiant  moue. 

"  And  for  that  reason,"  says  Lilly,  "  I  am  going  to 
take  pity  on  you  ;  I  am  going  to  dance  with  the 
girls  this  evening."  Then  assuming  the  attitude  of  a 
cavalier  and  the  drawl  of  a  dandy  she  lisps,  "  May  I 
have,  the — aw — honah  of  a  aw — turn  with  you  this 
evening,  Miss  Horton  ?  "  and  pretending  to  stroke 
an  imaginary  mustache  becomes  suddenly  red  and 
then  very  pale,  for  she  finds  her  upper  lip  has  some 
how  grown  very  rough  and  exceeding  fuzzy  during 
the  day. 

"  Certainly  ;  take  all  you  want,"  cries  Bessie  with 
such  enthusiasm  that  Lilly  forgets  her  alarm  in  the 
joy  of  Bessie's  friendship. 


A   FLORIDA  ENCHANTMENT.  IOI 

A  moment  after  her  companion  gives  her  a  start 
by  saying:  "  You  have  not  told  me  yet  what  was  in 
that  casket  you  bought  at  Vedder's !  Why,  how 
red  you  are,  Lilly  !  Here's  my  powder  puff !  " 

But  Miss  Travers  suddenly  points  across  the  room 
whispering,  "  That  is  the  girl  we  saw  in  the  balcony 
—you  remember  ? — the  one  that  was  looking  at 
Doctor  Cassadene  !  Do  you  know  her  name?" 

"  Oh  yes,"  babbles  Bess,  "  I  made  a  point  of 
inquiring  about  her.  She's  Miss  Rosa  King  of 
Charleston. — She  met  Dr.  Fred  Jast  month  and 
hates  Mrs.  Lovejoy. — Don't  you  think  Stella  is  per 
fectly  lovely?" 

"  She  is  very  nice."  This  last  diplomatically  from 
Miss  Travers. 

"  Mr.  Wilkes  introduced  me  to  her  yesterday,  and 
she  has  been  very  kind  and  attentive  to  me  all 
day,"  rattles  on  Bessie.  "  I  think  she  is  perfectly 
charming." 

"Charming!  She's  adorable,"  answers  Lilly  with 
so  much  enthusiasm  that  Bessie  returns  reproach 
fully  : 

"  Well,  I  don't  like  her  as  much  as  I  do  you  any 
way."  An  answer  that  makes  Lilly's  glances  very 
ardent. 

Under  them  her  companion  grows  restless  and 
suddenly  remarks,  "  But  we  are  missing  all  the  danc 
ing,  Miss  Connie  is  beckoning  impatiently  to  us, 
and  I  suppose  my  father  and  Dr.  Fred  have  been 
savagely  pacing  the  corridor  outside  for  the  last  ten 
minutes." 

Thirty  seconds  after  they  are  in  the  hallway  of 
the  giant  hotel  where  Miss  Lilly  finds  Bess's  predic- 


102  A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT. 

tion  is  true — and  the  major  and  Dr.  Fred  both  in 
very  bad  tempers. 

So  they  all  go  down  together  through  the  great 
corridors  into  the  rotunda,  and  so  to  the  dining- 
room  of  this  huge  caravansary. 

This  has  been  turned  into  a  ball-room  for  the 
evening,  though  only  a  portion  of  its  parquet  floor 
is  used  for  dancing,  the  rest  being  occupied  by  spec 
tators,  for  whom  seats  have  been  arranged.  In  one  of 
these  chairs  Miss  Connie  is  made  comfortable,  and 
Miss  Travers,  taking  Bessie  under  her  protecting 
wing,  strolls  about  the  ball-room,  which  is  only 
fairly  filled,  the  season  at  this  Florida  watering- 
place  being  still  in  its  infancy. 

Even  now,  however,  there  is  quite  an  assemblage 
of  women,  though  the  dress  suits  of  gentlemen  are 
very  few  and  wide  apart,  producing  a  dismal  prospect 
of  masculine  companionship  in  the  dance,  to  the 
numerous  ladies  who  are  strolling  about  in  pretty 
evening  costumes. 

The  music  is  just  breaking  into  a  waltz,  and 
Cassadene  overtaking  Miss  Bessie  and  her  com 
panion,  remarks  with  the  easy  assurance  of  mascu 
line  proprietorship  :  "  Miss  Travers,  my  dance,  I 
believe,"  and  is  astonished  and  disconcerted  at  her 
answer. 

Lilly  with  a  provoking  smile  returns  :  "  You  for 
get  the  promise  I  made  you." 

"  The  promise  to  dance  with  no  other  gentleman 
but  me  ? — of  course  I  remember  that  !  " 

"  I  beg  your  pardon — the  promise  to  dance  with 
no  gentleman  this  evening." 

"  Not    even    me  ?  "      The    astonishment    of   this 


A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT.  103 

Adonis  would  be  ludicrous  were  his  face  not  so  pit 
eous — for  Fred  always  wants  most  what  he  cannot 
get. 

"  Certainly  not.  I  am  a  man — I  mean  a — a  woman 
of  my  word."  And  Lilly's  voice  and  manner  would 
be  very  dignified  did  she  not  get  confused  over  the 
last  part  of  her  speech. 

"  Yes,  she  has  promised  to  dance  only  with  girls 
this  evening,  Doctor  Cassadene,"  breaks  in  Bessie, 
"  and  I've  got  four  of  them."  And  before  Fred 
can  make  reply,  the  two  young  ladies  are  in  each 
other's  arms  whirling  away  to  the  soft  strains  of  the 
"  Estudiantina."  Bessie  whispering  in  her  compan 
ion's  ear  :  "  How  beautifully  you  guide — just  like  a 
man  !  Your  arms  seem  so  strong  and  firm  and  you 
never  seem  to  hesitate  like  other  girls  when  bumped 
about  in  a  crowd." 

A  few  moments  after  .they  stand  by  Miss  Connie's 
side  taking  a  little  breathing  spell,  and  Mrs.  Lovejoy, 
turning  from  Mr.  Remington,  says  suddenly  :  "  Lilly, 
have  you  forgotten  your  promise — my  turn  next." 

Unheeding  Bessie's  reproachful :  "  Why,  our  dance 
is  not  finished  yet,"  Miss  T ravers  whirls  the  widow 
in  among  the  waltzers  with  as  much  grace  and 
vigor  as  any  of  the  dress-coats  that  are  perform 
ing  beside  her,  and  with  such  effect  that  Stella's 
eyes  droop  as  her  feet  keep  time  to  the  music, 
and  she  whispers  to  her  partner :  "  I  could  dance 
with  you  forever,  if  you  were  only  a  man.  Your 
waltzing  will  make  many  a  young  lady  happy  this 
evening — Oh,  you  madcap  !  "  for  Lilly  has  answered 
this  eulogium  by  a  sudden  almost  involuntary  but 
fervid  squeeze. 


104  A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT. 

"  Yes,"  whispers  the  putative  Miss  Travers,  en 
thusiastically — for  the  music  is  in  her  soul  and  the 
perfume  from  the  delicate  bouquet  in  Mrs.  Love- 
joy's  hands  is  in  her  nostrils  and  her  arm  is  clasping 
her  willowy  waist, — "  I  intend  to  give  the  girls  a 
treat  this  evening." 

And  so  she  does,  making  many  a  fair  one,  who 
has  been  lamenting  the  dearth  of  gentlemen,  for 
get  for  a  few  short,  blissful  moments  that  she  is 
not  dancing  with  a  claw-hammer  coat  and  that  a 
black  broadcloth  sleeve  is  not  around  her  waist. 

But  she  devotes  most  of  her  time  to  dear  little 
Bessie,  who,  despite  numerous  applications  from 
the  other  sex,  gives  Lilly  about  all  the  dances  she 
wants.  In  one  of  the  pauses  of  their  exercise, 
Miss  Travers  mutters  partly  to  herself,  •  "  And  to 
think  that  I  should  ever  enjoy  dancing  with  a  girl." 

"  Yes,  it  is  funny  !  "  cries  Bessie,  impulsively.  "  I 
like  it  also — give  me  another  turn." 

And  the  two  fly  about  in  each  other's  arms  till  the 
major,  Bessie's  father,  remarks  sarcastically  :  "  You 
girls  are  mighty  hard  on  the  boys  this  evening." 

With  the  widow,  however,  Lilly  dances  only  twice  ; 
for  Mrs.  Lovejoy  has  command  of  all  the  gentlemen 
she  wishes  and  though  she  likes  to  dance  with  Lilly, 
she  also  likes  the  satisfaction  of  showing  that  she 
can  have  all  the  masculine  devotion  she  desires. 

As  for  the  men,  there  are  many  of  them  about 
her  during  the  evening,  for  Miss  Travers  has  a  repu 
tation  for  both  beauty  and  wealth  ;  sugar  plums 
which  always  attract  the  masculine  portion  of  hu 
manity.  But  Lilly  refuses  them  all  in  so  off-hand 
and  careless  a  style  that  Miss  Connie  whispers  re- 


A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT.  IO5 

provingly  to  her  several  times  during  the  evening, 
and  young  Mr.  Wilkes,  the  Northern  orange  grower 
from  Indian  River,  upon  being  introduced  and  his 
request  for  a  turn  refused,  walks  off  savagely  to  the 
bar-room  to  forget  his  chagrin  in  the  flowing  bowl, 
and  meeting  some  other  gentlemen  there,  descants 
upon  the  Northern  heiress's  hauteur,  remarking, 
"  By  Jove  !  fellows  ;  I  merely  asked  her  to  dance 
with  me  once,  and  she  looked  as  if  she  would  knock 
me  down — hang  me  if  she  didn't  !  " — a  remark  that 
is  more  truthful  than  Mr.  Wilkes  imagines  as  he 
makes  it. 

But  the  evening  is  not  all  triumph  to  the  recently 
emancipated.  Old  Remington  who  is  somewhat  of 
a  cynic  and  philosopher  remarks  to  old  Horton, 
"  Isn't  Lilly  Travers  changed  ?  I  saw  her  a  year  ago 
at  one  of  the  Patriarchs'  in  New  York,  and  she  was  a 
perfect  dream  of  beauty — and  now  by  all  the  phos 
phates  in  Florida  !  she's  a  gawk — that  what  she  is!" 

"  In  truth,  age  does  not  improve  any  of  us,"  re 
turns  the  major  sadly — "  I  knew  her  aunt  when  she 
was  a  girl  of  eighteen.  She  was  the  loveliest  creature 
in  St.  Augustine.  I  and  young  Pinckney  of  Charles 
ton  fought  a  duel  about  her." 

"  And  then—      "  suggests  the  Northerner. 

"  Then,"  says  the  Floridian,  "  she  would  have 

neither  of  us — and  now "  he  looks  over  at  Miss 

Connie's  prim  and  rather  gaunt  figure  and  spectacled 
eyes  and  gives  a  reflective  sigh. 

"  Did  you  see  that  ?  "  whispers  Adams  Winthrop 
Dunbar  of  Beacon  Street,  Boston. 

"  What  ? — my  dear  chappy !"  lisps  Prescott  Cad 
Chowders,  of  Fifth  Avenue,  New  York, 


106  A   FLORIDA    ENCHANTMENT. 

"  That  Travers  girl- — a  waiter  happened  to  bump 
against  her,  and  she  clinched  her  fist  as  if  she  would 
floor  the  darkey — she's  strong-minded,  I  can  tell 
you ! " 

"  Yaas — and  strong-armed — my  dear  boy  ! — How 
she  twists  that  widow  about — steers  her  with  as 
much  power  as  Harvey  de  Witt  Van  Favors  who 
leads  all  our  Germans  this  year.  Won't  she  give  it  to 
the  fellah  who  marries  her  and  her  million  !  " 

Some  of  these  floating  remarks  coming  to  Miss 
Constantia's  ears  make  that  ancient  and  prim  spin 
ster  very  savage  with  her  niece. 

This  evening  also  there  are  certain  things  that  do 
not  suit  the  erratic  Lilly — she  cannot  assume  all  the 
privileges  of  the  sex,  she  cannot  boast  and  brag  to 
her  fellows  of  her  conquests — she  can't  stroke  her 
mustache  in  a  knowing  manner  when  Stella's  name 
is  mentioned,  she  can't  take  darling  little  Bessie  un 
der  her  arm  and  elbow  her  way  through  envious 
swains  and  put  her  in  her  carriage  with  a  soft 
squeeze  of  the  hand  and  a  killing  glance  in  her  eyes. 
— For  the  late  Miss  Travers  is  still  only  a  reckless 
boy  and  has  a  young  blood's  eagerness  to  show  off 
and  triumph  over  and  be  envied  by  his  fellows  and 
his  rivals. 

So,  as  Miss  Horton  has  departed  escorted  by  an 
other  young  gentleman  to  her  carriage,  upon  whom 
Lilly  looks  with  by  no  means  angelic  glances  though 
very  well  pleased  to  see  the  old  major  is  also  at  his 
daughter's  side,  and  the  hop  being  nearly  over,  these 
Ponce  de  Leon  dances  being  generally  early  and 
hungry  ones  as  the  hotel  provides  no  supper  for  its 
guests,  Miss  Travers  strolls  out  into  the  beautiful 


A  FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT.  IO/ 

court  yard  to  sit  among  its  flowers,  listen  to  the 
babble  of  its  fountain  and  hear  the  hum  of  the 
last  expiring  waltz  of  the  orchestra. 

This  she  does  alone,  for  women  wander  about 
these  Florida  hotels  in  the  free  and  easy  manner 
peculiar  to  this  Southern  town  that  for  three  short 
months  seems  on  a  continuous  picnic. 

Solitude  is  pleasing  to  her,  she  wants  to  think 
over  the  excitement  of  this  first  evening  of  her  boy 
hood,  in  which  she  has  been  so  happy. — She  thinks 
as  she  sits  beneath  a  magnolia  and  shaded  by  its 
leaves — "  To-night  would  have  been  perfect — if  I'd 
had  a  swallow-tail. — That  widow,  OH  ! — And  Bessie, 
AH!"  these  exclamations  stand  for  sighs  of  ecstasy. 

She  would  perhaps  run  on  in  this  strain  indefi 
nitely,  did  not  a  faint  sob  from  the  other  side  of  the 
little  hedge  that  cuts  her  off  from  another  path 
come  wafted  to  her  ears. 

It  is  a  woman's  and  as  such  appeals  to  the  mas 
culine  heart.  All  the  boy  in  Miss  Travers  is  up  to 
go  to  the  assistance  of  beauty  in  distress,  when  a 
gentleman's  voice  comes  to  her  ears  from  the  same 
spot,  and  it  is  one  that  makes  her  hesitate  and 
pause — the  one  that  was  like  music  to  her  but  yes 
terday — Doctor  Fred's  ! 

It  says  very  politely,  "  Rosa,  I  am  astounded  at 
this  outburst. — How  can  I  help  myself!"  and  Lilly 
knows  the  lady  he  addresses  is  the  one  that  looked 
in  anguish  on  his  attentions  to  Stella  the  day  be 
fore. 

"  How  can  you  help  it?"  the  girl  repeats,  "  How 
can  you  help  it  ?  You  haven't  even  asked  me  to 
dance  once  to-night — when  before  Mrs.  Lovejoy 


108  A  FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT. 

came  and  that  gawky  Travers  girl  got  here — you — 
were  so  different. — Oh  Fred,  can't  you  remember? — 
It's  only  two  weeks  ago — only- 
Miss  Travers  rises  and  walks  off — smiling  a  little  at 
the  thought  that  she  is  gawky  now,  and  then  mut 
tering  to  herself  in  sneer  at  the  sex  she  has  de 
serted,  "  And  yesterday  I  was  one  of  those  sigh 
ing,  appealing,  entreating  creatures  like  her — I'm  a 
rather  different  article  now. — From  this  time  on 
I  do  the  heart-breaking." — And  the  recollection  of 
this  scene  hardens  her  against  her  erstwhile  lover 
and  makes  it  easy  for  her  to  give  him  his  congtf — 
which  she  determines  to  do  this  very  night. 

She  strolls  in,  jc*ns  her  aunt,  and  in  a  few  minutes 
they  are  ready  for  the  drive  home,  Doctor  Cassadene 
coming  up  just  about  this  moment  with  a  somewhat 
annoyed  yet  triumphant  look  on  his  handsome  face 
to  receive  a  very  free  and  easy  "  Hello,  Fred,  who 
was  the  young  lady  in  the  moonlight  ? — We  fellahs 
are  having  a  night  of  it — ain't  we  ?  " 

This  is  answered  by  a  frown  from  the  gentleman 
addressed  and  a  subdued  snort  of  horror  from  Miss 
Connie  as  they  go  down  to  their  carriage. 


CHAPTER    IX. 

"  MY    MAN,    JANE." 


AND  so  they  all  drive  home  from  the  ball,  the 
aunt  so  savage  at  her  niece's  eccentricities  that  she 
says  very  little,  and  Doctor  Fred  in  very  glum  and 


A  FLORIDA  ENCHANTMENT.  IOQ 

moody  silence  also,  though  the  emancipated  one 
does  talking  for  the  three. 

She  is  in  very  high  spirits,  Bessie  having  promised 
to  come  and  spend  the  next  afternoon  with  her. 
This  makes  her  very  happy,  and  she  rattles  on, 
making  some  very  peculiar  remarks  for  a  young 
lady. 

"  Fred,  old  boy,  didn't  we  give  the  girls  a  treat  to 
night  ?  "  she  says  enthusiastically. 

"  Lilly,  you  astound  me,"  interjects  Miss  Connie 
severely  ; — the  gentleman  addressed  however  listens 
in  glum  silence. 

"  Do  you  know — Frederick  my  chappie — I  have 
only  envied  you  two  things  this  evening  ;  otherwise, 
I  flatter  myself  I  had  a  leetle  the  best  of  you,"  con 
tinues  the  late  Miss  Travers  airily. 

"  Indeed  ?  What  were  they?" — curiosity  has 
opened  the  Doctor's  mouth. 

"  Well,  first,  your  enjoyment  of  your  cigar  on  the 
veranda;  and,  second,  the  privilege  you  had  of 
meandering  towards  the  bar  between  dances.  But 
I'll  catch  up  to  you — mighty  shortly  !  " 

"  Lilly,  those  are  terrible  words  for  a  young 
woman,"  cries  her  aunt  in  horror,  and  is  delighted 
to  find  the  drive  over  and  the  carriage  standing  at 
the  entrance  to  their  house. 

The  two  are  assisted  to  alight  by  Doctor  Fred, 
and  Miss  Connie,  bidding  him  "  Good-night  "  and 
thanking  him  for  his  escort,  goes  into  the  house. 

Lilly  would  follow  her,  and  is  saying  "  Adieu," 
when  Fred's  hand  clasps  her  arm  determinedly — 
almost  roughly.  He  whispers :  "  Before  you  go  in, 
I  want  a  word  with  you." 


IIO  A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT. 

"  Oh  !  half  a  dozen — I'm  not  sleepy  !  " 

"  Then  come  round  the  corner  of  the  veranda; 
we  shall  be  out  of  the  driver's  sight  and  hearing." 

"  Certainly.  Light  your  cigar  ?  I  see  you  are 
dying  for  a  smoke  !  If  you  have  two  in  your  case, 
I'll — I'll  join  you  ! — You — you  don't  offer  it  ? — Oh 
how  stingy  !  "  remarks  Lilly  roguishly. 

They  have  passed  to  the  other  side  of  the  house 
now,  and  Fred  turns  upon  her  in  severe  displeasure. 

"  This  last  request  of  yours,  Miss  Travers,"  he 
says  sternly,  "  is  in  line  with  your  other  perform 
ances  this  evening.  Perhaps  you  wish  by  such  un 
ladylike  conduct  to  alienate  my  affection." 

"  You  have  guessed  it,  Fred,"  she  answers.  "  After 
this,  I  only  wish  to  be  to  you  as  one  good  fellow  is 
to  another  good  fellow — friends — nothing  more.  I 
do  not  even  "  — here  she  smiles — "  claim  the  privilege 
of  sisterhood." 

The  reply  she  receives  astonishes  her. 

"  And  do  you  think  to  destroy  my  love,  by  these 
pranks?  Lilly — I — I  love  you  all  the  more  for  your 
spirit — you  can't  deceive  the  eyes  of  love  though 
you  play  your  part  very  nicely  !  "  cries  the  Doctor 
in  longing  tones  ;  for  now  the  girl  who  is  passing 
away  from  him  seems  dearer  to  him  than  ever. 

"  Don't  talk  nonsense,"  says  Lilly  in  a  business 
like  way.  "  It  is  impossible  for  me  ever  to  become 
your  wife." 

"  How  long  have  you  known  this  ?"  gasps  the  man. 

"  Since  yesterday  evening." 

"Ah,  it  is  always  yesterday  evening."  Then  he 
whispers:  "  If  it  had  not  been  for  that  unfortunate 
occurrence,  for  my  stupidity — my  neglect,  if  you 


A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT.  Ill 

will — would  you  now  have  been  my  sweetheart — 
my  love — my  Lilly  of  yesterday." 

"•I  should,"  says  the  late  Miss  Travers. 

"  Then  I'll  retrieve  myself.  I'll  make  you  forgive 
me.  In  spite  of  yourself,  I'll  make  you  marry  me 
within  the  month  !  " 

With  this  audacious  masculine  threat,  Doctor 
Fred  is  about  to  stride  from  the  veranda ;  but  a 
light  though  firm  grasp  is  on  his  arm  and  a  laughing 
voice  cries,  "  That  is  impossible,  I  love  another — 
shes  a  darling!  "  And  Lilly  passes  into  the  house 
leaving  him  astounded  and  confounded. 

After  a  time  however  he  thinks  the  "  she  "  is  a  slip 
of  the  tongue,  but  goes  off  in  a  very  bad  humor  to 
the  Ponce  de  Leon  where  he  finds  Mrs.  Lovejoy 
still  seated  on  the  veranda  with  some  ladies  and 
gentlemen,  and  the  widow's  blue  eyes  have  a  very 
soothing  effect  on  this  bird  of  passage. 

This  interview  has  taken  hardly  a  minute,  and 
Lilly  stepping  into  the  house  finds  Constantia 
awaiting  her  with  words  of  reprooi. 

"  You  have  broken  with  Doctor  Fred  ?  "  she  says. 

"  Yes." 

"And  that  was  the  way  you  took  to  do  it?" 

"  Yes  !  "  Lilly  is  delighted  at  her  aunt's  taking 
this  view  of  her  eccentricities. 

"  Then,  you  have  made  a  fool  of  yourself,"  cries 
the  old  lady. 

"  And  why  ?  " 

"  Because  you  are  not  now  the  kind  of  a  girl 
men  fall  in  love  with." 

"  Why  not  ?     I  have  had  plenty  of  devotees." 

"  Yes  ;     you    have    had    them,    but    you     have 


112  A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT. 

changed.  No  man  would  love  such  a  girl  as  you. 
It  would  not  be  natural.  You  are  too  bold.  You 
are  not  retiring.  You  clenched  your  fist  at  a  waiter 
this  evening — I  saw  you  ;  you  needn't  attempt  to 
deny  it,  your  glove  is  torn  even  now  from  your 
violence  !  "  And  looking  down  Lilly  sees  her  aunt's 
remark  is  true. — During  the  evening  her  growing 
hands  have  made  her  gloves  a  torture  to  her,  and 
now  one  has  burst  in  a  disreputable  rent  under  the 
increasing  strain. 

"You  would  have  knocked  him  down,  had  you 
dared,"  cries  Miss  Connie  in  continuation.  "  You 
are  a  torn-boy — that's  what  you  are,  and  to  think 
only  yesterday  you  seemed  so  different— so  womanly 
— so  lovable  !  I — I  am  dis-gus-ted 7  "  and  a  burst  of 
tears  closes  this  harangue. 

Her  niece's  "  Now,  don't  cut  up  rough,  old  lady  !  " 
"  Just  go  easy,  will  you,  a  little  while," — and  other 
masculine  expressions  of  penitence  produce  new 
spasms  in  her  aunt.  She  retires  weeping  to  the 
solitude  of  her  chamber. 

A  moment  after  Lilly  runs  up  to  her  apartment, 
throws  herself  into  a  chair  and  mutters  : 

"  I've  had  a  pretty  good  time  myself,  but  others 
don't  seem  to  enjoy  me  as  much,  barring  the  widow 
and  Bess. — This  can't  last  long.  I  shall  be  dis 
covered.  My  woman's  nature  is  being  kicked  out  of 
me  by  masculine  impulses." 

Then  she  glances  at  the  glass  and  laughs  at  her 
self,  remarking,  "  I  shall  soon  have  to  shave  !  I 
hardly  think  I  can  ever  persuade  Aunt  Connie  and 
Jane  that  I'm  a  bearded  woman  !  " 

This  sends  her  into  a  profound  meditation  as  to 


A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT.  113 

her  future  course — and  thinking  of  Bess,  she  mutters, 
"  I'll  never  go  back  to  the  trammels  of  young  lady 
hood — I  love  and  can  tell  my  love — unchained  by  the 
shackles  of  maiden  modesty  " — and  so  goes  to  ponder 
ing  upon  the  best  method  of  carrying  out  her  plans. 
One  thing  strikes  her  at  once.  Jane  will  certainly 
discover  her  secret  soon. — She  turns  this  matter 
over  in  her  mind  and  after  a  little  bursts  into  a 
laugh  and  cries,  "  A  gentleman  should  have  a  valet." 

At  this  moment  her  meditations  are  broken  in 
upon  by  a  groaning  and  wailing  and  gnashing  of 
teeth  and  she  hears  a  subdued  :  "  Oh,  Gus  !  yo'  break 
my  heart,"  coming  from  the  dressing-room,  that  is  oc 
cupied  by  Jane.  The  next  instant  she  laughs  :  "  I've 
struck  it.  I'll  make  her  a particeps  criminis  in  my 
offence  of  becoming  a  man  !  " — and  with  masculine 
promptness  proceeds  to  act  upon  her  idea. 

She  opens  the  door  and  finds  her  dusky  abigail 
dressed  and  seated  upon  the  bed  in  a  state  of  darky 
frenzy. 

"  Didn't  I  tell  you  to  not  wait  up  for  me  ?"  Lilly 
says  sternly. 

"  Yes,  miss  ; — (sob) — "  I  knows  dat ;  " — (sob) — "  but 
I  couldn't  go  to  sleep,  I'se  so  wretched  !  "  (sob — sob — 
sob  /) 

"  Come  in  here  and  tell  me  what's  the  trouble  with 
you,"  cries  her  mistress  sharply,  smothering  a  laugh, 
for  she  has  made  a  shrewd  guess  as  to  what  is  the 
matter. 

"  It's  dat  Gus  feller,  dat's  what  it  is.     He's  busted 

my  heart !  "  answers  Jane,  and  entering  she  gushes 

forth  in  rage,  "  He's  been  cuttin'  up  shines  wid  dat 

Antoinyet  dat  works  in  de  ha'r-dresser  shop  in  de 

8 


114  A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT. 

Alcazar  ; — a  low  down  Spanish  nigger,  dat's  what 
.she  is.  Some  day  I'll  get  desp'ret  an'  razor  him — 
I  will  !  " 

"  No  you  won't,"  says  Lilly  sharply.  "  And  I 
won't  have  such  talk  from  you.  You  are  jealous, 
that's  what's  the  matter  with  you." 

"  Jealous  !— Well,  isn't  dat  'nuff  ?  " 

"  Jealous  !  And  I've  got  a  remedy  for  it !  Do 
you  think  you'd  like  to  take  something  soothing  to 
the  wounded  female  heart  ?  " 

"  If  yo'  could  give  me  somethin'  as  would  make 
me  close  my  eyeballs  in  sleep — and  keep  me  from 
goin'  plump  out  of  my  head,  I'd  go  down  on  my 
knees  to  bless  yo',  Miss  Lilly  !  "  sobs  her  maid. 

''Then,"  remarks  Lilly,  unlocking  her  jewel  case 
and  producing  the  vial  with  its  three  precious  seeds, 
"  Open  your  mouth  !  " 

"  Is  dat  med'cine?  " — suspiciously. 

"  Yes  ;  medicine  for  jealousy.  Take  it,  and  you 
will  be  all  right."  And  this  fair  intruder  on  the 
domain  of  man  selects  one  of  the  sacred  African 
pellets. 

"  Yo'  sho'  tain't  pizen  ?  " 

"Nonsense!  I  took  one  last  night  myself.  Wasn't 
I  jealous  of  Doctor  Frederick  then  ?  "  answers  the 
mistress,  and  she  places  the  seed  in  a  glass  and  adds 
a  few  drops  of  laudanum  from  her  travelling  medi 
cine  case,  for  she  fears  the  vigor  of  Jane's  lungs  after 
she  experiences  the  effects  of  the  weird  pill. 

"  Y-e-s  ;  yo'  was,  jealous  to  death  yo'  was!  "  mut 
ters  Jane  with  a  guffaw. 

"  Very  well  ;  have  I  been  jealous  of  him  since? 
Haven't  I  been  light-hearted, — gay, — happy  ?  " 


A  FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT.  11$ 

"Yes  ;  yo's  been  too  almighty  uppish,  Miss  Lilly." 

"  Very  well  ;  open  your  mouth  and  be  the  same ! 
Would  you  like  it  with  a  little  whiskey  ?  "  and  Miss 
Travers  cunningly  adds  the  spirit.  "  Open  your 
mouth  ! " 

And  as  Jane  unable  to  withstand  the  temptation 
obeys,  she  skilfully  flips  the  seed,  whiskey  and  lau 
danum  down  the  capacious  opening,  which  gaps  be 
fore  her,  nearly  large  enough  to  take  in  a  cannon- 
ball.  This  closes  upon  the  amber  pellet  and  then 
suddenly  flies  open  again  to  give  out  one  long-drawn 
awful  howl  of  astonishment  and  terror !  It  would 
give  out  a  succession  of  these  did  not  at  this  mo 
ment  a  pair  of  white  and  delicate  but  vise-like  and 
desperate  hands  clutch  her  throat. 

"  What  am  de  mattah  wid  me  ?  What's  got  hold 
of  myinsides?  It's  pizen  !  It's  pizen  !  dat's  what 
it  is,  sho'  ! — I'se  gone — I'se  dead  !  "  gasps  the  hand 
maiden  in  struggling  gurgling  whispers. 

"  Hang  you  !  "  whispers  the  late  Miss  Travers ; 
"  if  you  don't  stop  screaming,  you'll  alarm  the  house. 
Stop  !  or  I'll  throttle  you  !  "  and  the  white,  desper 
ate,  vise-like  hands  give  Jane's  dusky  throat  another 
savage  pinch. 

11  Laws  !  Yo's  as  strong  as  a  man — yo'  is — ough  !  " 
gasps  the  dusky  abigail  being  propelled  at  this  mo 
ment  by  the  powerful  arms  of  the  putative  Miss 
Travers  into  a  chair. 

"Yes  ;  wouldn't  you  like  to  be  a  man  ?  Honest, 
now — tell  me  the  truth." 

"Ob  co'se — I'd  like  to  be  a  man,  de  bes'  in  de 
woiT !  Did  yo'  ebber  see  a  woman  dat  wouldn't  be, 
ef  she  could — 'cause  I  ain't." 


Il6  A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT. 

"  Nor  I  either,  Jane,"  remarks  her  mistress  con- 
cordantly.  "  It  has  been  the  universal  desire  of 
your  down-trodden  sex,  from  the  time  they  can 
think." 

"  Yes,  an'  yo'  down-trodden  sex,  too,"  returns  the 
dusky  abigail  rather  sleepily,  for  the  laudanum  is 
producing  its  effect. 

But  here,  her  mistress's  words  come  to  her  in  such 
a  mysterious  and  awful  manner  that  she  wakes  up 
with  a  horrified  start  and  rolls  her  eye-balls,  and  her 
jaws  shake  and  her  teeth  chatter,  and  she  would 
howl  but  is  too  terrified  to  do  more  than  gasp,  for 
now  Lilly  remarks  solemnly  :  "  My  down-trodden 
sex  yesterday, — but,  last  night,  Jane,  an  extraordi 
nary  change  took  place  in  me — I  became  a  man." 

Then  she  tells  her,  in  as  simple  manner  as  she 
can,  the  wonderful  story  of  old  Hauser  Oglethorpe 
and  the  extraordinary  transformation  that  has  been 
effected  in  her  by  one  of  the  amber  seeds. 

"  An'  I  took  one  ob  'em  Obi-nuts  too,"  cries  Jane. 
"  Oh,  Lawdy  !  Lawdy  !  Yo'  mean  to  tell  me  I'll  be 
a  man  to-morrow  ?  " 

"  Yes — or  sooner." 

"  Tain't  possible  ;— I  know  I'se  goin'  to  die  ! 
Golly  !  my  insides  is  bein'  uprooted." 

"  You  are  not  going  to  die, — so  make  up  your 
mind  to  take  it  calmly.  Supposing  you  had  been 
born  so — you  would  not  have  been  frightened  then, 
would  you  ?  Now,  don't  be  astonished." 

"  Astonished  ?  I'd  be  astonished  now,  I'd  be 
howlin',  but  I'm  too  sleepy  to  do — much  camp- 
meetin'  business — to-night." 

"  Yes,  I  have  given    you    a   narcotic. — Now,    to- 


A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT.  1 1/ 

morrow  morning,  when  you  awake,  don't  you  let  any 
one  see  you  until  I  have  a  talk  with  you  ; — remem 
ber  that !  " 

"  Yes'm  ;  but  I'se  so  sleepy,  Miss  Lilly. — Yo'  let  me 
go  to  bed  and  I'll  talk  to  yo'  to-morrow  mawnin'; 
— a  man  ?  Ef  I  was  awake  I'd  ,be  a-glorifyin'  now — 
a  m-a-n  !  " 

This  last  is  a  yawn  from  Jane  who  staggers  sleep 
ily  into  her  room  and  punctuates  the  night  with  long- 
drawn  deep  terrific  darky  snores ;  but  unheeding 
these,  Lilly  sits  down  to  complete  the  plan  she  has 
outlined  in  her  mind. 

She  looks  at  herself  contemplatively  in  the  mirror 
and  says  :  "  You're  a  nice  boy.  I  wonder  what  I 
shall  name  you.  I  must  give  you  a  pretty  name, 
because  you  are  the  one  who  is  going  to  have  all 
Miss  Lillian  Travers'  property.  I'm  going  to  make 
you  a  rich  young  dandy,  sir — but  no  dude  and 
no  '  rounder  ' — remember  that !  " 

After  a  little  playful  cogitation,  she  continues,  giv 
ing  a  polite  bow  to  her  image  in  the  glass,  which  re 
turns  it  in  true  gentlemanly  style  :  "  You  are  going 
to  be  Mr.  Lawrence  Talbot,  that  is  to  be  your  name, 
sir  ; — Lawrence  Talbot,  nt  Lilly  Travers. — What  a 
funny  announcement  that  would  be  in  the  papers  !  " 

Then  she  sits  down  and  writes  a  check  on  the  St. 
Augustine  bank  which  holds  her  Florida  funds,  for 
a  goodly  portion  of  her  balance  there,  and  writes  a 
letter  to  that  institution  directing  it  to  remit  to  her 
New  York  bankers  the  balance  of  her  account,  sign 
ing  "  Lillian  Travers,"  very  prettily,  though  there  is 
a  slight  masculine  boldness  in  the  signature.  Look 
ing  at  it  she  remarks  to  herself  playfully  :  "  I  wonder 


Il8  A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT. 

if  that  is  forgery.  If  so,  I  am  going  to  do  a  good 
deal  of  it  in  the  next  few  days." 

Soon  she  jumps  into  bed  and,  turning  various 
problems  over  in  her  mind,  goes  to  sleep  murmuring  : 
"  Dear  little  Bessie.  I  wonder  if  she'll  think  Larry 
Talbot  is  a  nice  young  fellow.  I'll  give  her  a  chance 
to  judge  of  him  before  long."  And  so  dreams  come 
to  her,  and  they  are  pleasant  ones,  for  she  laughs  in 
her  sleep — to  be  awakened  from  'them  the  next 
morning  by  the  sun  shining  brightly  into  her  apart 
ment,  and,  springing  up,  she  looks  at  her  watch  and 
finds  it  nine  o'clock  and  begins  to  think  of  Bessie. 

Then  she  gives  a  sudden  jump — for  from  the  next 
room  is  coming  in  a  deep,  masculine  tone,  sung 
with  emphasis  and  effect,  and  joyous  enthusiasm  : 

'  De  Lawd  am  risen  ! 
Bress  de  Lawd  ! 
De  Lawd  am  risen  !  " 

"Ah!  That's  my  man  Jane!"  says  Miss  Lilly 
Travers  and  tips  a  knowing  little  wink  to  Mr.  Law 
rence  Talbot  who  returns  it  from  the  mirror. 

The  next  instant  the  hosanna  ends  in  a  squeak  of 
terror,  the  door  from  Jane's  room  flies  open  and  that 
new  recruit  to  masculine  ranks  dashes  in,  one  shak 
ing,  trembling,  flying  mass  of  panic. 

In  another  second  she  would  be  in  the  hall  to 
arouse  the  household,  but,  like  a  flash  of  lightning 
Lilly  pins  her,  and  forces  her  into  a  chair. 

"  Let  me  get  'way  from  here — de  Obi's  workin' 
too  much  on  me — de  debble's  conjered  me. — I'se — 
I'se  mose  gwine !  "  gasps  the  dusky  Jane  struggling 
vainly. 


A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT.  119 

"  Keep  still  until  your  senses  come  back  !  Are 
you  crazy — going  on  like  this  ?  Why  did  you  say 
you'd  like  to  be  a  man  if  you  didn't  mean  it  ?  " 

"  I  did  mean  it,  Miss — Massa  Lilly  ;  but  I  didn't 
know  it  was  goin'  to  work  so  pow'ful — I  was  sing 
ing  a  jubilee  for  joy  when  I  felt  it — a  big  lump  in 
my  throat — it's  goin'  to  bust  an'  let  out  de  life 
blood. — Honey,  I'se  most  gone  now. — Look  at  de 
tumor,"  and  Jane  exhibits  a  well-developed  and 
prominent  Adam's  apple  to  Lilly's  relieved  eyes. 

"  Pooh  !  "  says  the  emancipated  mistress.  "  That's 
only  a  proof  of  manhood.  All  men  have  one.  I've 
one  myself,"  and  placing  her  hand  to  her  white 
throat  Lilly  gives  a  start,  for  she  has  a  very  nice 
little  one  also. 

"  And  did  yo'  hear  my  voice  ?  "  returns  Jane  more 
quietly — "  I'se  got  a  debble  of  a  cold." 

"  So  have  I,"  says  Lilly.  "  Didn't  you  notice  my 
contralto  yesterday  ?  Now  you  listen  to  me  :  don't 
sing.  If  you  do,  Aunt  Connie  will  think  there  is  a 
man  up  here." 

"  An'  so  dere  is,  Miss — Massa  Lilly — two  ob 
'em,"  retorts  Jane,  beginning  to  giggle,  and  recover 
ing  her  spirits  rapidly  after  the  volatile  manner  of 
the  negro.  "  We's  bof  in  de  same  boat,  praise 
de  Lawd." 

"  Yes  ;  and  if  we  are  to  remain  in  the  same  boat, 
don't  you  speak  of  what  has  happened — not  a  word 
to  any  one.  Jane,  we  might  be  arrested  for  walk 
ing  about  in  women's  clothes  !  Think  of  that  !  " 

"  Jailed  !  Den  my  lips  has  de  lockjaw  !  "  mutters 
the  masculine  maid-servant,  and  after  a  moment 
bursts  into  an  uncontrollable  guffaw,  keeping  this  up 


120  A   FLORIDA    ENCHANTMENT. 

till  her  mistress  says  angrily :  "  What  amuses  you 
so?" 

u  I'se  jes'  thinkin' — whaugh — whaugh — 'bout  dat 
Gus — how  mad  he's  goin'  to  be — whaugh  !  whaugh  ! 
whaugh  !  "  and  Jane  indulges  in  suppressed  whoops 
till  the  tears  roll  down  her  face. 

"  Great  goodness,  you  didn't  think  of  telling 
him  ?  " 

"''Deed  I  did. — It  would  have  made  Gus  feel  so 
cheap. — Try  in*  to  be  sweet  to  a  man  !  " 

"  Gus  is  to  know  nothing  about  this  business  ! 
Throw  him  over.  Let  him  be  as  angry  as  he 
chooses,  but  hold  your  tongue  to  him  !  "  whispers 
Lilly  in  alarm. 

"  But  ef  he  comes  roun'  tryin'  to  kiss  me,  I'se 
sartin  to  slug  him." 

"  Not  at  all — you  must  act  like  a  modest,  bashful 
young  woman,"  says  the  late  Miss  Travers  sooth 
ingly. 

"  Dat's  purtty  hard  now,  Massa  Lilly- — I  means 
Miss  Lilly.  Lawd !  I  don't  know  what  I  mean  ! 
I'se  so  uppity,  there'll  be  no  keepin'  me  down." 

"  Very  well  ;  get  rid  of  your  surplus  energy  by 
helping  me  to  dress,"  cries  the  mistress  sharply  ;  and 
Jane  does  so  grinning  and  chuckling  with  darky 
delight  over  the  efforts  she  has  to  make  to  get  her 
master  into  his  corsets  and  the  groans  and  writhings 
that  he  emits  under  her  strong  and  vigorous  ma 
nipulations  as  she  draws  the  lacing  together.  All 
this  makes  Miss  Travers  satisfied  that  the  resolution 
she  has  made  the  night  before  is  the  only  safe  one: 
flight  her  only  resource.  She  is  now  convinced  that 
even  if  accident  does  not  disclose  the  marvellous 


A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT.  121 

transformation  of  her  life,  her  man  Jane  will  do  it 
for  her  in  some  unguarded  moment. 

This  causes  her  to  make  a  foolish  threat.  She 
says  sternly  :  "  Jane,  do  you  like  to  be  a  man?  " 

"  Yes'm  ;  I'se  feelin'  fust  rate  'bout  it." 

"  Then,  do  as  I  bid  you,  or  I'll  give  you  one  of 
those  Obi  seeds  and  change  you  back  into  a  woman." 

"  Foh     de-     Lawd's     sake,    doan'    do    it,    miss  — 
massa  !  " 

"  I  will,  if  you  don't  do  exactly  as  I  tell  you  :  you 
are  not  to  leave  the  house,  on  any  account  ;  you 
must  also  stay  as  much  as  you  can  in  my  rooms 
until  we  leave  St.  Augustine." 

"  When  '11  dat  be?"  sullenly. 

"  To-morrow  morning. — You  may  go  to  packing 
my  trunks  now. — Leave  one  open  for  me  !" 

"Well,  Miss— Mr.,  I'll  try  to  keep  in;  but  I  be 
feelin'  so  fine  an'  uppity,  I'd  like  to  take  a  walk  roun' 
town. — Doan'  yo'  think  Malvina,  Miss  Constanshe's 
housemaid — is  a  kinder  fine-lookin'  gal,  miss?  " 

"  Don't  you  dare  think  of  girls, — until  you  have 
left  St.  Augustine.  If  you  do,  you'll  be  one  your 
self — I  swear  it,"  cries  the  author  of  Jane's  muta 
tion. 

"  Well,  ma'am,  I'll  do  as  yo'  orders,"  mutters  the 

man  Jane  in  a  dogged  and  perhaps  surly  manner,  as 

Lilly  steps  down  to  breakfast   to   try  and   play  her 

.part  with  Miss  Connie  who  is  waiting  for  her  at  the 

table. 


122  A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT. 


CHAPTER    X. 

"  HAVE    I,     LIKE    FRANKENSTEIN,     RAISED    UP    A 
MONSTER   TO   DESTROY   ME?" 

SHE  enters  the  dining-room,  kisses  her  aunt  pen 
itently  and  says :  "  Dear  Connie,  I  hope  you  will 
forgive  me  for  being  so  foolish  and  so  unladylike  last 
night  ;  but  my  heart — my  breaking  heart — ran  away 
with  me.  Fred  has  destroyed  my — my  happiness." 

"  My  poor  child  ! "  and  Connie's  old  arms  go 
sympathizingly  round  her  putative  niece's  waist. 
"  What  makes  you  think  Doctor  Cassadene  has  not 
treated  you  properly  ?  " 

"  I — I  know  it.  I've  broken  with  him  now,  and 
can  tell  you."  Then  in  a  half  sobbing  way  she 
relates  to  the  sympathizing  old  lady  the  record  of 
Fred's  lying  note  and  his  treachery  in  taking  Stella 
for  the  moonlight  sail. 

"  Well,"  remarks  Miss  Constantia.  "  I  have  only 
known  Mrs.  Lovejoy  one  day,  but  I  do  not  trust 
her.  She  is  a  very  designing  widow,  Lilly." 

"  Oh,  I  have  nothing  more  to  fear  from  widows," 
says  the  girl  of  yesterday  quite  confidently.  "  I  am 
going  away  from  here.  I  am  going  North  again.  I 
—I  came  down  to  marry  Fred,  but  now  that  is  all 
over,  and  the  sooner  I  go  away  the  better.  I — I  can't 
stand  it  here."  And  she  squeezes  a  counterfeit  tear 
from  her  eye-lids,  but  recollecting  that  she  is  going 
to  leave  dear  Bessie,  makes  it  a  real  one. 

"  Yes — I  expect  it  is  the  best  thing  you  can  do," 
returns  her  aunt  contemplatively,  for  even  in  this 
short  conversation  Lilly  has  unwittingly  let  fall  one 


A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT.  123 

or    two  masculine    expressions.      "  When    do   you 
think  of  going  ?  " 

"  To-morrow  morning — '  Florida  Special.' — I  must 
look  after  my  tickets !  " 

Whereupon  Lilly  proceeds  to  make  her  arrange 
ments  as  scheduled  in  her  mind.  She  requests  her 
aunt  to  return  her  horses  and  carriage  that  she  has 
sent  from  the  North  and  are  now  due  in  St.  Augus 
tine — drives  to  the  First  National  Bank,  cashes  her 
check,  and  then  to  the  railway  ticket  office  in  the 
Ponce  de  Leon,  where  she  engages  a  state-room  in  the 
boudoir  car  that  leaves  for  the  North  next  morning. 
This  is  easily  done,  as  the  rush  in  February  is  all 
southward,  the  trains  running  out  quite  empty  and 
returning  very  full  to  this  Florida  watering-place. 
Next  a  curious  masculine  idea  having  come  into  her 
head,  she  goes  to  a  gun  store  and  purchases  a  small 
revolver  and  has  it  loaded  by  the  shopman  who 
shows  her  how  to  work  the  mechanism  of  the  arm. 

This  stowed  away  in  her  pocket,  she  drives  back 
to  her  relative  and  falls  to  discussing  with  her  aunt 
her  return  to  New  York,  receiving  some  unintentional 
stabs  from  the  dear  old  lady,  who  loves  her  as  the 
apple  of  her  eye  and  appears  very  loath  to  part  from 
her,  though  in  truth  some  of  Lilly's  performances  of 
the  preceding  day  have  been  very  shocking  and  by 
no  means  pleasant  to  this  good  old  representative  of 
ancient  etiquette. 

But  Lilly  throws  conscience  to  the  winds.  Her 
one  thought  is — Bessie  will  be  coming  soon  / 

So  she  steps  into  the  front  garden  to  be  on  hand 
to  welcome  her  beautiful  little  sweetheart — for  such 
she  has  got  to  calling  Bessie  in  her  mind.  This  she 


124  A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT. 

does  impatiently  some  ten  minutes  before  the  girl 
is  due ;  Miss  Bess  having  quite  a  long  drive  into 
town  from  her  father's  orange  groves  and  house, 
some  three  or  four  miles  up  the  San  Sebastian. 

Astonishment  and  joy  !  the  late  Miss  T ravers  finds 
Miss  Horton  is  fully  as  eager  as  she  is  for  the  meet 
ing,  and  Bessie's  horses  and  negro  coachman  come 
into  sight  just  as  Lilly  reaches  her  front  gate  to 
take  an  anxious,  longing  glance  up  the  road  for  their 
appearance. 

With  a  gentleman's  ready  politeness  Lilly  steps 
to  the  carriage,  and  saying  to  the  coachman  :  "  You 
needn't  cfrive  in  ;  I'll  take  care  of  Miss  Bessie  now," 
assists  the  sweet  little  lady  to  the  ground  and  mut 
ters  into  her  ear  :  "  You  darling — ten  minutes  ahead 
of  time !  " 

"  Yes ;  my  horses  were  very  fresh  and  I  told 
Nicodemus  he  needn't  hold  them — I  like  to  drive 
fast,  when  I  have  pleasure  ahead  of  me. — Ah  !  going 
to  play  the  gentleman  again.  How  nice  !  " — for 
Lilly  has  offered  her  arm,  masculine  style.  The 
little  gloved  hand  goes  confidingly  into  the  nook 
made  for  it  ;  and  they  stroll  up  the  walk  to  the 
house. 

Arriving  at  the  portico,  Bessie  gives  a  piteous 
pout  and  whimpers :  "  I  don't  like  you  this  morning." 

"  Don't  like  me?"  Miss  Travers  gives  a  horrified 
and  reproachful  stare. 

"  No  ;  you  haven't  kissed  me." 

"  H-ah  ! — Wouldn't  you  like  me  just  as  well  if  I 
didn't  ?  "  asks  Lilly  contemplatively. 

"  No  !  " — imperiously.  "  Kiss  me  or  I  shall  hate 
you!" 


A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT.  12$ 

"  Then,  I  suppose  I  must,"  mutters  the  late  Miss 
Travers  ;  "  you  are  a  wilful  little  despot," — and  she 
gives  her  tyrant  a  playful  buss.  But  one  playful 
buss  brings  on  another,  and  before  they  go  into  the 
house  Bessie  cannot  complain  of  Lilly's  neglect. 

Lunch  is  ready,  and  at  this  meal  Miss  Connie 
opens  her  eyes  at  her  niece's  gallant  care  of  their 
guest.  She  remarks  playfully  :  "  I  believe  in  hos 
pitality,  but,  Lilly,  Bessie  will  live  if  she  doesn't  eat 
strawberries  and  cream  more  than  twice  at  a  meal ; 
and  my  cake  is  good,  I  know  ;  but  you  will  kill  her  if 
you  force  her  to  eat  another  mouthful." 

"  Yes,"  mutters  Bess,  with  a  sigh  of  repletion  ; 
"  I  think  I'll  do  until  supper-time  " — then  she  con 
tinues  anxiously,  "  Lilly  hasn't  eaten  anything." 

"  No,"  cries  Connie,  "  she  has  been  doing  nothing 
but  watch  you.  She  had  a  good  appetite  when  she 
was  here  last,  but  now  " — here  the  old  lady  gives 
a  sigh,  for  she  imagines  that  the  broken  engagement 
and  Fred  Cassadene's  miserable  behavior  are  the 
causes  of  her  beloved  niece's  lack  of  appetite.  Watch 
ing  her  opportunity  she  takes  Lilly  aside  and  says: 
"  Don't  grieve  so  much  for  him.  Perhaps  when  you 
get  away  from  here  you  will  forget  him  and  be 
happier." 

"  Happier?  I  shall  not,  I  am  sure,"  answers  Lilly 
with  a  sigh,  thinking  of  bidding  Bessie  adieu. 
"  When  I  am  away  from  her — I — I  mean  here — I 
shall  be  even  more  miserable." 

"  Then  you  had  better  stay  !  " 

"  Impossible  ! — I  dare  not." 

"  Dare  not  !  "  cries  the  aunt  in  rage  and  astonish 
ment.  "  PO  you  love  this  miserable  doctor  so  you 


126  A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT. 

fear  your  heart  again  ?  Lilly,  you  surprise  me  !  "  and 
with  a  snort  of  anger  Miss  Connie  goes  away,  leav 
ing  Lilly  to  break  the  news  of  her  intended  depart 
ure  to  the  little  blonde  whose  blue  eyes  have  been 
merry  and  whose  mouth  has  been  laughing,  but 
whose  eyes  now  become  sad  and  whose  mouth  goes 
into  a  pout  of  pain  as  she  hears  this  terrible  news. 

She  cries  out :  "You — you  have  only  been  here 
two  days.  What  do  you  mean — going  away  ?  The 
season  has  not  commenced  yet ;  "  and  getting  up 
from  the  table  with  a  "  gulp  "  in  her  throat  suddenly 
walks  into  the  garden. 

"  What's  the  matter  with  her?  "  ejaculates  Connie, 
looking  from  the  parlor.  "  You  have  set  her  to  cry 
ing  ; "  for  the  suspicion  of  a  sob  floats  in  the  door 
way,  which  after  the  manner  of  most  Florida  houses 
in  this  beautiful  spring  climate  is  nearly  always  open. 

"  Oh,  I'll  fix  her,"  says  Lilly.  "  Just  leave  her  to 
me,"  and  runs  to  overtake  the  distressed  damsel, 
rather  delighted  that  her  announcement  has  been  so 
effective. 

But  Miss  Horton  has  disappeared. 

She  looks  for  her  through  the  orange  vistas — in 
vain.  She  cries  out  "  Bessie  !  " — no  answer.  She 
darts  hither  and  thither  in  pursuit  of  this  elusive 
chick — without  success.  Then  she  lifts  up  her  voice 
and  calls  :  "  Bessie  ? — Dear  Bessie  ? — Darling  Bes 
sie?" — until  finally  some  of  these  adjectives  appar 
ently  softening  the  secluded  one,  a  broken-hearted 
voice  comes  to  her  through  the  grape  vines  that  en 
tirely  screen  a  little  arbor  : 

"  I  am  here,  but  I  don't  want  to  see  you — go 
away  ;  leave  me  alone  !  One  would  think  you  loved 


A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT.  1 27 

me   by   the  things   you    call  me — but   acts  are " — 
(sob). 

By  this  time  Lilly  has  broken  through  the  surround 
ing  branches  to  find  .a  bewitching  but  mournful 
picture.  Bess  has  thrown  herself  into  a  hammock 
that  has  been  swung  in  the  little  arbor  for  summer 
uses  and  has  given  herself  up  to  grief. 

"  Go  away;  I  don't  love  you,"  she  mutters. 

"  Oh,  yes,  you  do,"  answers  Lilly  desperately. 

"  No,  I  don't" — (sob);  "  you're  going  away" — 
(sob)  "  you  don't  love  me  " — (sob — sob — sob). 

"  Yes,  I  do,"  says  Miss  Travers  with  energy. 
Then  she  cries  out  desperately :  "  Come,  get  up  at 
once.  Your  performances  are  driving  me  crazy,  "- 
as  in  truth  they  are,  for  Miss  Bessie's  easy  abandon 
of  grief  in  the  hammock  is  full  of  most  potent  and 
distracting  allurements  to  Lilly's  masculine  eyes. 

"Come,  sit  up,"  she  says;  "sit  up  and  talk  sensi 
bly.  You  know  I've  got  to  go  away  from  here  to 
morrow.  It  is  impossible  for  me  to  remain." 

"  Not  one  more  day  ?  " 

"  Not  a  day — not  an  hour — not  a  minute  !  My 
stateroom  is  engaged.  The  'Florida  Special'  has  got 
to  take  me  away.  Come.  Make  the  most  of  this  after 
noon.  Don't  make  our  parting  too  hard,  for  I  " 
here  the  emancipated  one,  having  got  her  arms 
about  the  tempting  one,  cries  out :  "  I  am  unhappy, 
also  !  "  and  her  misery  seems  to  soothe  Bessie. 

"  Ah !  you're  sorry.  That  makes  our  parting 
easier.  If  you  are  unhappy  to  leave  me,  I  know 
you  will  come  back  to  me.  Promise,  and  I  will  be 
a  good  girl,  even  a  glad  girl,  this  afternoon,"  purrs 
the  blonde  fairy. 


128  A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT. 

"  I — I  swear  it !  "  is  uttered  in  tones  of  such  de 
termination  that  even  Bessie  believes,  and  suffers 
herself  to  be  consoled  ;  and  still  lying  in  the  ham 
mock,  she  turns  a  tear-stained  but  lovely  face  upon 
Miss  Travers,  and  seizing  some  orange  blossoms 
that  are  growing  over  the  hammock,  twists  them 
into  a  wreath  and  crowns  her  lovely  head,  and  toss 
ing  others  about  her,  says  : 

"  Do  I  look  pretty  ?  "  And  the  orange  blossoms 
getting  into  the  late  Miss  Travers'  brain,  cau§e  her 
masculine  mind  to  think  of  what  orange  blossoms 
mean,  and  she  looks  upon  the  picture,  and  it  is  too 
lovely,  too  entrancing,  too  inviting  for  masculine 
eyes  ;  for  the  girl's  exquisite  figure  with  its  rounded, 
though  maiden  contours,  is  wonderfully  outlined  by 
her  attitude,  and  two  adorable  ankles  robed  in 
gleaming  silk  and  disclosing  insertion  are  flashing  in 
and  out  beneath  the  white  muslin  dress,  as  she 
swings  in  lazy  motion. 

The  blood  surges  to  the  late  Miss  Travers'  head. 
She  gasps,  "  Too  alluring  !  Too  beautiful !  "  and  un 
able  to  stand  the  fascination  of  the  picture,  destroys 
it ;  for  she  plucks  Bessie  out  of  the  hammock  bodily 
by  force.  Then  she  says  :  "  Come.  Let  us  take  a 
drive  about  the  town,  and  then •" 

"  And  then,  I  suppose,"  pouts  Bessie,  "  papa  will 
take  me  home." 

"  Not  immediately,"  remarks  Miss  Travers  ;  "  he 
shall  stay  to  dinner,  and  then  we  will  inveigle  him 
into  a  game  of  cards," — for  she  knows  the  major's 
weakness. 

Thus  the  two  walk  about  chatting  while  Con- 
stantia's  carriage  is  being  made  ready  for  them ;  a 


A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT.  1 29 

few  minutes  of  this  and  Miss  Bessie,  whose  agile 
mind  hops  from  subject  to  subject  as  a  bird  from 
twig  to  twig,  suddenly  says  :  "  Oh  !  I  forgot — Fancy  ! 
I  forgot  !  " 

"  Forgot  what  ?  " 

"  Forgot  to  ask  you  about  the  box  you  bought  at 
Vedder's  ?  What  was  in  it  ? — something  romantic, 
I  am  sure.  You  seem  to  have  been  a  different  girl 
since  you  got  it,"  cries  Miss  Horton.  Then  gazing 
on  the  blushing  emancipated  one  she  continues, 
"  I  know  there  was  something  in  it,  because  your  face 
is  so  red." 

"  Pshaw  !  "  jeers  Lilly,  attempting  lightness  ;  "  you 
saw  the  casket  on  our  parlor  table  when  you  came 
in  yesterday."' 

"Yes!" 

"You  saw  it  half  an  hour  ago." 

"  Yes  ;  it  was  open." 

"  What  did  it  contain  ?  " 

"  Nothing," — disappointedly. 

"That  is  what  I  found." 

"  Well,  that  is  very  curious,"  cries  Miss  Horton 
in  suspicious  unbelief ;  "  because  I  lifted  that  casket 
half  an  hour  ago,  and  it  was  not  nearly  so  heavy 
after  it  had  been  opened  as  it  was  before.  Why, 
Lilly,  what's  the  matter  with  you  ?  " — for  Miss 
Travers  has  grown  very  pale. 

A  moment  after,  however,  she  forces  herself  to 
say,  "  There  was  nothing  in  it  when  I  opened  it. 
Bessie,  you  must  believe  me  if  you  want  to  be  my 
friend.  Do  you  believe  me?  " 

"  Certainly,  I  do  !     Rather  than  quarrel  with  you 
I'd  believe  you  if  you  told  a  lie." 
9 


130  A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT. 

"  That  is  more  blissful  than  complimentary," 
answers  Lilly,  with  an  attempted  laugh. 

"  I  expect  Miss  Connie  must  have  opened  it 
before  you,"  says  Bessie,  "  and  got  some  great 
secret  out  of  it — something  so  great  she  won't  tell 
anybody  else — I'll  ask  her." 

This  gives  Lilly  another  shudder.  She  cries — 
"  Not  now ;  we  haven't  time — carriage  is  here." 

With  this  she  jumps  the  inquiring  blonde  into 
the  equipage  in  such  a  vicious,  vigorous  and  mas 
culine  manner  that  Bessie  whispers,  "  You  don't 
want  me  to  ask  Miss  Connie,  do  you  ?  " 

"  Stop  talking  nonsense,"  replies  her  companion. 
"  Let  us  enjoy  ourselves  for  this  afternoon — the 
last  I'll  have  with  you  for  some  time." 

This  silences  Miss  Horton,  and  when  she  opens 
her  mouth  again  it  is  upon  another  subject. 

So  the  two  drive  away  to  have  a  pleasant  after 
noon  in  the  pretty  streets  of  St.  Augustine,  and 
listen  to  the  band  at  the  Cordova,  and  see  a  swim 
ming  contest  in  the  Alcazar  bath,  and  come  home, 
having  spent  a  day  that  would  be  a  happy  one,  were 
they  not  to  part  on  the  morrow. 

The  evening  brings  the  major  who  has  driven 
down  for  his  daughter,  but  to  the  girls'  entreaties 
Miss  Connie  adds  her  word  and  he  finally  is  in 
duced  to  remain  an  hour  or  two,  though  he  says 
th'e  night  looks  threatening. 

After  tea  in  the  parlor  they  have  cards,  the  puta 
tive  Miss  Travers  making  herself  very  attentive  to 
•,  the  old  gentleman,  as  if  she  were  anxious  to  gain 
;his  respect  and  confidence. 

Constantia,  who  has  opened  her  eyes  several  times 


A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT.  131 

at  Lilly's  deference  to  the  rather  dogmatic  assertions 
of  the  major,  remarks  aside  to  her :  "  What's  come 
into  you  ? — you're  as  obsequious  as  if  you  were  a 
young  gentleman  with  designs  on  Miss  Bessie  "- 
and  wonders  what  brings  so  much  color  into  her 
niece's  cheeks. 

But  a  chance  shot  of  the  major's  wounds  the 
emancipated  one  most  deeply. — There  has  been  a 
two-headed  cow  on  exhibition  on  Bay  Street,  the 
ex-Confederate  has  seen  it  and  has  not  thought  he 
had  got  his  quarter's  worth,  and  tells  his  wrongs, 
asserting  that  the  two-headed  critter  hasn't  brains 
enough  to  run  one  animal ;  and  thus  being  started 
upon  the  subject  he  runs  on  in  a  most  uncompli 
mentary  way  about  dime-museum  freaks,  of  whom 
he  has  apparently  seen  a  goodly  quantity,  remark 
ing  they  are  all  frauds,  and  that  living  skeletons, 
Siamese-twins,  tattooed  ladies,  Circassian  beauties 
and  bearded  women  should  be  all  put  under  ground 
as  soon  as  born. 

At  this  attack  on  bearded  women  Miss  Travers' 
face  grows  rosy  and  then  pallid,  and  for  her  life  she 
can't  keep  her  fingers  from  her  fuzzy  upper  lip. 
She  feels  she  is  being  called  a  dime-museum  freak 
and  wonders  what  the  major  would  say  to  a  woman- 
man  demanding  his  adored  Bessie's  hand  in  mar 
riage,  and  sickens  at  the  thought. 

But  the  cards  are  now  over  and  the  major,  rising 
to  go,  perceives  that  his  predicted  storm  has  come 
upon  him — the  rain  which  has  been  pattering  un 
noticed  for  an  hour,  is  now  pouring  down  in  tor 
rents,  and  the  wind  is  howling  through  the  mag 
nolias,  palm  and  orange  trees. 


132  A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT. 

"  Great  Goliah  !  "  mutters  the  old  gentleman,  strid 
ing  to  the  window.  "  What  a  night !  The  roads 
will  be  fearful.  Can  you  lend  Bess  a  tarpaulin  ?  " 

But  Miss  Connie  hurriedly  exclaims  :  "  Do  you 
suppose  I'm  going  to  let  you  and  your  daughter 
pass  out  of  my  doors  on  such  a  night  as  this  ?  I 
have  ordered  your  horses  round  to  the  stable  and 
they  are  taken  care  of  and  warm  now." 

These  remarks  are  commonplace,  but  they  bring 
panic  perspiration  all  over  the  putative  Miss  Trav- 
ers'  forehead  ;  her  heart  beats  wild  and  frightened, 
her  finger  tips  grow  icy. 

"  Isn't  this  lovely,  Lil  ?  "  Bess  chimes  in  enthusi 
astically.  "  If  I  stay  here  all  night  I  can  go  down 
with  you  to  the  train  in  the  morning  and  see  the 
very  last  of  you." 

But  Lilly  is  not  responsive  and  stands  aloof  ner 
vously  tapping  on  the  window  pane,  and  staring 
out  into  the  night  to  keep  the  agitation  on  her  face 
from  notice.  A  moment  after,  the  major  having 
yawned  once  or  twice  in  a  suggestive  manner,  Miss 
Connie  rings  the  bell  and  says  to  the  answering 
servant,  "  Malvina,  show  Major  Horton  to  the  blue 
chamber.  A  fire  is  made  up  there  ; — light  it."  And 
having  said  "  Good-night "  the  ex-Confederate  is 
ushered  away  to  enjoy  his  solitary  cigar  and  night 
cap  and  then  turn  in. 

His  departing  steps  have  hardly  died  away  when 
Miss  Connie,  addressing  her  niece,  says  in  tones 
that  seem  like  thunder  claps,  though  not  intended 
as  such,  "  Lilly,  take  Bess  with  you  and  go  to 
bed." 

"  I — I  think  she  had  better  have  the  wing-room," 


A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT.  133 

answers  Lilly  nervously  ;  then  seeing  a  wounded 
look  in  Bessie's  violet  eyes,  she  continues  :  "  Bess 
would  never  be  able  to  sleep  in  my  room.  My 
maid's  snoring  is  something  awful,  and  Jane,  you 
know,  occupies  my  dressing  room." 

"  Oh,  I  don't  mind  snoring,  Lilly,"  says  Bess  un 
concernedly.  "Father  snores, — you'll  hear  him 
yourself  to-night  !  " 

"  Anyway,  get  along  to  bed,  both  of  you,"  cries 
Miss  Connie.  "  Lilly,  don't  forget  you  have  got  to 
get  up  early  to-morrow  morning  to  catch  that  train." 
And  the  old  lady  having  kissed  them,  goes  away, 
and  Miss  Bessie  says — innocent  words  that  make 
the  emancipated  one  very  nervous  : 

"  This  is  jolly  !  "  she  cries.  "  Come  along,  quick — 
dear  !  It  is  going  to  be  a  cold  night,  and  I  love  to 
cuddle."  At  this  a  sudden  gleam  of  fire  comes  into 
the  late  Miss  Travers'  eyes  and  a  fervid  shiver  seems 
to  fly  through  her  body.  "  Besides,  you  can  tell  me 
all  about  the  mysterious  contents  of  the  black  box 
that  you  seem  to  wish  to  keep  to  yourself  so  much  " 
—whispers  Bessie  as  they  go  up-stairs.  "  Why  don't 
you  speak  to  me  ?  You  seem  to  be  thinking  about 
something." 

"And  so  I  am,"  mutters  Lilly  sharply — "think 
ing  I  am  not  going  to  keep  you  awake  to-night  by 
snoring  and  kicking  about  as  I  always  do  in  my  sleep. 
Which  added  to  Jane's  performances  in  the  next 
room,  means  for  you  a  sleepless  night." 

"  Oh  !  what  a  whop — "  cries  Bessie  in  a  rage,  check 
ing  herself,  however,  on  the  last  word  and  going  on 
in  a  plaintive  voice,  "  I  stayed  with  you  last  spring 
when  you  were  here,  and  you  were  a  lovely  bed- 


134  A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT. 

fellow.  However,"  here  she  becomes  pathetically 
sarcastic,  "  I  will  most  willingly  excuse  you,  though 
you  know  you  are  telling  fibs  by  the  wholesale.  You 
wish  to  be  alone,  you  selfish  thing — that  settles  the 
question,  Miss  Travers  !  "  This  Miss  Horton  em 
phasizes  by  a  formal  courtesy. 

This  remark  is  made  in  the  hall  in  front  of  Lilly's 
apartments,  which  consist  of  one  big  room,  full  of 
old-fashioned  furniture,  and  beyond  it  a  dressing 
closet  which  is  generally  occupied  by  Jane,  but  is 
now  suspiciously  silent.  On  the  right  hand  of  Miss 
Travers'  apartment  is  the  wing-room,  a  door  con 
necting  it  with  Lilly's  chamber. 

Striding  into  this  wing-room,  Miss  Travers  lights 
the  lamp  and  says :  "  This  is  where  you  are  to  stay, 
Bess." 

"  So  I  cannot  hear  you  snore  ?  " 

"  Certainly.  So,  go  to  bed !  and  now — good 
night." 

"  If  you  don't  kiss  me  good-night,  I'll  stay  where 
I  am."  Bessie,  not  having  followed  her  guide,  is  still 
in  the  late  Miss  Travers'  chamber  and  seems  loath 
to  leave  it. 

"  Very  well — there  !  " — the  "  there  "  is  a  short  and 
savagely  intense  kiss.  "  I've  kept  my  promise,  now 
keep  yours,"  mutters  Lilly.  "  Disappear  !  I've 
got  some  packing  to  do  before  I  go  to  bed." 

With  this  after  a  playful  struggle  she  pushes 
Bessie  into  the  wing-room,  and  steps  back  into  her 
own  apartment,  in  spite  of  her  little  sweetheart's 
reproachful  eyes  at  being  thus  deserted.  Closing 
the  door  softly,  Lilly  sits  down  before  a  freshly  made 
fire  to  meditate  in  its  flickering  light  upon  what 


A  FLORIDA  ENCHANTMENT.  i$$ 

course  she  shall  pursue  with  the  self-willed  little 
beauty  in  the  next  room. 

She  is  aroused  from  this  reverie  by  a  strange 
sound  from  the  wing-chamber,  and  stepping  cau 
tiously  to  the  door  she  listens.  Bessie  is  sobbing  in 
a  heart-broken  way  upon  the  other  side  of  it  ;  she 
whispers  softly  :  "  What's  the  matter  ?  " 

"  You — you  know,"  comes  from  the  other  side. 
"  I'm — I'm  lonely  here — in  a  strange  room.  How 
mean  you  are!  You've  broken  my  heart." 

This  reproachful  pathos  overcomes  the  late  Miss 
Travers.  A  sudden  inspiration  flying  into  her  mind 
she  opens  the  door,  and  stands  dazed  at  the  lovely 
vision,  for  Bessie  has  thrown  off  her  gown  and 
unbound  her  tresses  and  is  beautiful  as  a  dream,  her 
blonde  hair  flowing  over  shining  shoulders  and  white 
garments. 

"  Bessie,  you  know  I've  got  some  packing  to  do," 
gasps  Lilly  retreating  but  gazing. 

"  Yes.     Let  me  help  you  !  " 

"  No — you'll  only  be  in  my  way.  It  will  take  me 
an  hour.  Go  to  sleep  and— 

"  And  when  you've  finished  packing  you  will 
come  to  bed  with  me  ?"  savagely. 

"  Yes  !  "  desperately. 

"  Very  well,"  says  the  girl  tossing  her  hair  about 
and  making  it  gold  in  the  lamplight.  "  It's  a  bar 
gain,  though  I  don't  trust  you.  That  *  Yes '  of 
yours  was  a  kind  of  wail." 

And  Lilly  turning  from  the  lamplit  beauty  into 
the  dim  light  of  her  own  room  mutters  to  herself : 
"  For  one  night  for  my  little  sweetheart's  sake  I'll 
be  once  more  a  woman  !  "  and  a  chill  of  fear  runs 


136  A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT. 

over  her  that  manhood  may  never  come  again  and 
the  happiness  of  wooing  her  own  sweet  Bessie  be 
lost  to  her  forever. 

But  even  as  she  thinks  this  there  is  a  little  patter 
of  unshod  feet  upon  the  carpet,  and  a  soft  voice 
comes  to  her,  "  Lilly,  I  hate  to  trouble  you  but  I'm 
—I'm  laced  so  tight,  I  can't  undo  myself  without 
my  maid.  Where's  yours  ?  " 

"  Jane ! "  This  is  a  horrified  gasp  from  Miss 
Travers. 

u  Of  course  Jane — she's  in  there  !  "  and  though 
Lilly  hurriedly  cries,  "  You — you  mustn't  awake 
her,"  Bessie  has  the  door  open  and  looking  in  says, 
"  There  is  no  chance  of  my  waking  her — Jane  has 
gone  out." 

"  Out !  "  and  Lilly  is  at  the  door  gazing  on  her 
man  Jane's  unoccupied  bed  and  wondering  what 
new  embarrassment  the  untutored  masculine  maid 
servant  may  bring  upon  her,  gadding  about  the 
streets  of  St.  Augustine. 

"  I  suppose  by  your  not  wishing  me  to  awake 
Jane,  you  intended  to  do  me  the  kindness  yourself. 
Lilly,  please  help  me,  I'm  tied  up  so  tight?"  en 
treats  Bessie. 

So  over  corset  strings  with  flushed  cheeks,  shining 
eyes,  thumping  heart  and  fingers  made  clumsy  by 
haste  the  late  Miss  Travers  toils,  and  Bessie  smiling 
in  her  face  sees  admiration  and  laughs,  "  Don't  you 
think  I've  a  pretty  figure  ?  " 

"  You'd  have  a  better  one  if  you  didn't  lace  it  so 
tight,"  answers  Lilly,  with  masculine  devotion  to 
hygiene. 

"  Why,   what's    come    over   you  !  "  says    Bess  in 


A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT.  137 

astonished  pique. — "  You  used  to  be  a  wasp-waist 
yourself,  and  now  lecturing — you  talk  like  an  idiot 
man  !  Besides,  I'm  not  laced  tight — behold  me  !  " 
With  this  she  gives  a  little  shadow  dance  in  front  of 
the  fire  that  displays  by  its  ruddy  gleams  such  lithe 
graces  of  pose  and  figure  and  glimpses  of  general  fairy 
beauty  that  the  putative  Miss  Travers  writhes  under 
its  allurements  and  mutters  hoarsely  "  Be  still ! ' 
But  Bessie  answers,  "  Say  I  haven't  a  pretty  figure 
now — mean  one!  "  and  would  continue  her  "pas  de 
fascination"  did  not  her  companion  with  tormented 
eyes  cry  "  Stop  !  "  so  imperiously  that  the  figurante 
gives  a  startled  pause  and  asks,  "  What's  the  matter?" 

"  Nothing ! "  answers  the  emancipated  one 
shortly. — "  But  sit  down  on  the  sofa. — Be  quiet — I 
want  to  talk  to  you — I'm — I'm  going  away  to-mor 
row."  This  last  sadly. 

"  Do  you  suppose  I've  forgotten  that  !  "  murmurs 
Bessie  softly;  then  she  says  archly,  "  Say  I've  a 
pretty  figure  and  I'll  sit  down  !  " 

"  Darling,  you've  the  loveliest  in  the  world,"  cries 
Lilly,  tenderness  and  admiration  fighting  with  each 
other  in  her  voice. 

"  Well,  having  convinced  you  I'll  sit  down ! " 
With  a  purr  of  content  Bessie  cuddles  herself  in  a 
white  beauty-ball  upon  the  sofa,  while  Miss  Travers 
who  somehow  appears  afraid  of  being  too  near  this 
torturing  loveliness  sits  in  a  chair  and  watches  the 
firelight  play  about  her  charmer's  golden  hair  and 
throw  soft  shadows  about  her  fair  young  head. 

A  second  after  Lilly  says  suddenly,  "  Bess,  you 
would  like  a  lover?" 

«  Pooh!  "  says  Miss  Beauty  "  I've  had  lots.  |  " 


138  A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT. 

"Lots!"  Miss  Travers  gasps — " you're — you're 
only  eighteen  !  " 

"  Certainly  lots — I  began  at  five.  Don't  you 
think  I'm  a  catchy  girl  ?  "  returns  Bessie. — "  What  a 
funny  thing  you  are — you  were  angry  a  second  ago, 
now  you're  laughing ! "  and  Miss  Blue-eyes  looks 
amazed. 

"  You're  a  cute  little  puss  who  should  have  a — a 
husband  !  "  mutters  the  transformed  one. 

"  Yes,  a  husband  might  do  !  "  sighs  Bessie  contem 
platively. — "  Boy  lovers  are  such  unsatisfactory 
creatures. —  But  a  husband. —  Now  if  you  had  a 
brother,  Lil  !  " 

"  Wouldn't  a  cousin  do  ?"  cries  out  Miss  Travers 
in  joyous  tone. 

«  Y-e-s — perhaps— 

"  Perhaps  what  ?  " 

"  Perhaps  if  he  looked  like  you  !  " 

"  He  does  look  like  me." 

"  Ah,  he  exists  ! — a  real  cousin."  And  Bessie  flies 
on  excitedly :  "  Tell  me  all  about  him — like  you — 
he  must  be  awfully  handsome — what's  his  name  ? — 
How  old  is  he  ? — Pshaw  !  you're  making  up  a  fairy 
story — I  never  heard  you  had  a  cousin  before 

"  But  I  have,"  says  Lilly  confidently.  "  He's  a — 
a  young  Englishman,  a  distant  cousin. — You  know 
I've  some  English  relatives  on  my  father's  side." 

"  Yes — what's  his  name  ?  " 

"  Lawrence  Talbot."  The  words  come  slowly 
from  Miss  Travers'  lips  as  if  she  must  be  very  care 
ful  to  make  no  mistake. 

"  That's  a  nice  name,"  babbles  Bessie.  "  Tell  me 
all  about  him  !  " 


A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT.  139 

And  in  the  firelight  with  a  tremble  in  her  voice 
as  if  she  were  pleading  her  own  cause,  not  another's, 
the  late  Miss  Travers  tells  the  present  Juliet  the  sad 
story  of  the  absent  Romeo.  "  He  has  but  few  rela 
tives  and  is  very  well  off — I  am  sure  he  will  make  a 
good  husband,"  she  concludes. 

"  Oh,  but  he  may  not  want  me  !  " 

"  He  will  want  you  !  "  says  Lilly  impressively. 
"  He  shall  marry  you  !  " 

"  What  a  matchmaker  you  are  !  "  answers  Bessie 
lightly  and  then  she  laughs.  "  Send  your  Lawrence 
Talbot  along  and  I'll  inspect  him." 

"  Yes,  he's  coming  from  England — he'll  be  in 
Florida  within  a  month.  I'll  give  him  a  letter  of 
introduction,"  cries  Miss  Travers  enthusiastically. 

"  All  right — but  I  sha'n't  love  him  half  as  well  as 
I  do  you  !  "  says  Bessie. 

"  And  why  not  ?  " 

"  Oh,  he  \von't  boss  me  about  as  you  do,  Lil — 
you're  such  a  lovely  tyrant !  " 

"  Then  I'll  earn  my  title — "  returns  Lillian  lightly. 
"  Go  to  bed  :  get  your  beauty  sleep  and  let  me  pack  !  " 

"  I  won't !  "  says  the  obedient  one  defiantly. 

"  To  bed  !    or  I  revoke  my  promise !  " 

"  Oh,  what  a  boss  you  are,  Lil.  But  there  !  " 
and  two  soft  white  arms  close  about  the  putative 
Miss  Travers  and  fresh  sweet  lips  press  upon  her 
trembling  ones  and  give  her  courage  to  make  her 
sacrifice,  as  Bessie  trips  away  to  bed. 

The  instant  she  is  alone,  with  a  sigh  of  resigna 
tion,  but  determined  mien  and  eye,  Lilly  is  at  her 
jewel  case  in  which  she  has  locked  up  the  sacred 
seeds. 


140  A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT. 

The  key  is  in  the  lock — Astonishment !  The  vial, 
seeds  and  record  are  all  gone — Despair  ! 

For  a  moment,  she  tremblingly  thinks  she  may 
have  carelessly  left  the  key  in  the  lock  ;  she  may, 
in  some  temporary  fit  of  caution  and  forgetfulness 
have  secreted  the  vial  and  its  precious  contents  in 
some  other  hiding  spot. 

She  flashes  up  her  lamp  and  makes  hurried — anx 
ious — trembling  search — tumbling  over  her  unpacked 
things  with  careless  speed  and  reckless  noise. 

Upon  this  Bessie's  voice  comes  from  the  next 
room  in  protest.  "  What  are  you  prowling  about 
for,  so  Lil  ?  "  she  growls. — "  Why  don't  you  come  to 
bed? — I'm — I'm  cold." 

This  sends  a  shiver  through  Miss  Travers.  She  is 
at  her  search  again.  A  sudden  thought!  Jane  may 
have  packed  the  seeds  in  one  of  her  trunks.  Into 
her  locked-up  boxes  she  plunges.  Their  carefully 
arranged  contents  fly  out.  In  a  jiffy  robes  are 
tossed  one  way,  bonnets  the  other. — She  is  bending 
down  anxiously  into  a  Saratoga  when  Bess  springs 
from  the  next  room  in  lacey  night  robe  and  par 
alyzed  horror  and  whispers  "  Burglars  !  " 

"  Burglars,  nonsense  !  " 

"  A  burglar ;  I  hear  his  steps  on  the  roof  of  the 
veranda — Listen — Oh  mercy  !  " 

For  at  this  moment  mixed  with  the  sound  of  rain 
drops  a  heavy  tread  is  heard  outside  the  window. 

"  I'm  going  to  scream  !  " 

"  Stop  !  "  mutters  Lilly  desperately — "  You'll 
alarm  the  house  !  Not  a  word  !  " — and  perhaps 
anxious  to  play  the  hero  before  such  a  lovely  hero 
ine,  and  perchance  making  a  shrewd  guess  as  to  the 


A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT.  14! 

truth,  the  late  Miss  Travers  produces  her  newly 
purchased  weapon — and  springing  to  the  window 
she  throws  it  open  and  claps  the  pistol  to  the  in 
truder's  head — whispering,  "  Speak,  or  I  shoot !  " 

"  Don't — for  de  Lawd's  sake  !  Don't  !  I'se 
Jane  !  "  gasps  a  voice  outside. 

"  Jane  !  "  echoes  Lilly. 

And  Bessie  gasps  in  admiration,  "  How  brave  you 
are  ! — You're  like  a  man  !  " 

"  Nonsense,"  mutters  Miss  Travers.  Then  she 
cries,  "  Come  in,  you  hussy  !  "  and  her  handmaiden 
in  dripping  dress  and  muddy  boots  totters  in  and 
horrifies  her. 

She  says,  "  I'se  got  clean  away." 

"Got  away — from  whom,  Jane?" 

"De  constable!  " 

"  Why,  what  have  you  been  doing  ?  "  This  is  in 
Bessie's  voice  and  puts  Lilly  into  instant  action. 
In  a  second  she  has  dragged  the  white-robed  one 
into  the  wing-chamber,  crying,  "  With  that  window 
open — you'll  catch  your  death  of  cold — Get  into 
bed !  "  And  before  the  astounded  Bessie  can  lift  up 
her  voice  in  expostulation  Miss  Travers  has  dashed 
back  into  her  own  room  and  locked  the  door  between 
and  is  standing  in  judgment  over  the  errant  Jane. 

"  Now,"  she  says  in  an  awful  voice,  "  where  have 
you  been  ?  " 

"  Jus'  round  a  leetle,  Miss — Mister  Lilly  !  " 

"  Round  a  little  ? — What  have  you  been  doing  ?  " 

"  Gurl  huntin'  ! "  says  Jane  stolidly ;  then  she 
grins  towards  the  room  into  which  Bessie  has  just 
disappeared  and  mutters,  "  Yo's  been  doin'  some 
thing  in  dat  way — 


142  A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT. 

She  gets  no  further.  The  last  word  is  squeezed 
back  into  her  throat  by  Lilly's  clutch.  "  Keep  your 
tongue  quiet  or  I'll— fix  you  !  "  she  whispers.  "  Now 
answer  my  questions  as  quickly  as  you  can.  You  say 
the  officers  are  after  you — what  have  you  done  ?  " 

"  Well,  I  kinder  wandered  round  to  the  servants' 
quarters  of  de  Ponce,  and  Gus  Duncan  he  seed  me 
and  wanted  to  make  up,  and  I  kinder  led  him  on  till 
he  tried  to  kiss  me  and  den— 

"  And  then  ?  " — says  Lilly  anxiously. 

"  Then  I  let  him  have  it  good.  Dere  was  quite 
a  crowd  round  and  it  did  me  proud  to  see  how 
'sprised  dey  was  at  a  woman  laying  out  de  second 
man  in  de  Ponce  de  Leon  dinin'-room,  de  one 
what  shows  de  folks  to  der  chairs." 

"  Did  you  injure  him?"  queries  Lilly  uneasily. 

"  No  marm — I  means  sir — I  only  jumped  on  Gus 
a  few  times. — He's  gone  to  de  hospital.  He  said 
he'd  get  a  warrant  for  me !  " 

"  A  warrant  !  "  mutters  Lilly  in  a  despairing  voice  ; 
then  she  cries  suddenly, "  Jane,  where  arethose seeds?" 

"  Dem  seeds? — Am  dey  gone  ?  "  asks  the  abigail 
— "  Oh  Lawdy  !  Lawdy!  More  trouble  !  "  and  she 
would  raise  her  voice  in  lamentation. 

"  None  of  that  for  me— you — you  !  "  Lilly  stam 
mers  in  rage.  "  Now  just  tell  me  exactly  where  you 
put  them." 

"  I  didn't  put  'em  nowhere ! " 

"  Jane,  if  you're  afraid  I'll  make  you  take  one  and 
become  a  woman  again,  I  swear  to  you  I  will  not — 
only  I  must  have  the  seeds  !  "  pleads  Lilly,  who  is 
very  anxious  now. 

"  I  don't  done  nothin'  wid  de  seeds.     Please  let 


A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT.  143 

me  alone.  I'se  so  cold  and  wet  and  scared  I  can't 
think  of  nothin'  else — What'll  dey  do  wid  me  when 
dey  cotch  me  ?  Golly  !  what'll  de  jidge  say  when  he 
finds  I'se  a  man  ! — Oh,  camp-meetin'  !  "  and  Jane 
gives  a  guffaw  which  is  answered  by  a  gasp  from 
Lilly,  to  whom  these  words  strike  terror. 

With  Jane  arrested  the  secret  is  sure  to  come  out. 
She  says  hurriedly — "  Go  into  your  room  and  change 
your  damp  things.  You'll  be  put  in  the  chain-gang  or 
sent  to  the  convict-camp  if  they  catch  you." 

"  De  convict-camp  !  "  gasps  Jane,  her  face  dusky 
with  horror,  for  she  has  heard  of  the  monstrous 
cruelties  of  these  hells  of  justice. 

"  Yes — your  one  chance  is  for  me  to  get  you  out 
of  St.  Augustine  this  morning " — answers  Lilly, 
glancing  at  the  clock  which  points  to  two.  "  Get 
clean  things  on  and  help  me  pack  my  trunks." 

And  Jane  departing — the  late  Miss  Travers  gives 
a  shiver  of  misery.  An  angry  voice  comes  from 
behind  Bessie's  door,  and  her  sweetheart  is  rattling 
the  handle  of  the  lock  savagely  and  calling  her 
names,  and  she  thinks,  "  Jane  arrested — My  secret 
discovered — My  God  !  the  major — !  what  will  he 
do  ?  " — and  shudders  with  fright  and  mutters — 
"  My  Heaven,  am  I  like  Frankenstein  ?  Have  I 
raised  up  in  Jane  a  monster  that  will  destroy  me  ?  " 


CHAPTER  XL 

"GOOD-BY,    BESSIE!  " 

BUT    the   thought  of   the  major's  future  rage   is 
driven    out    by   his   daughter's    present    one — Miss 


144  A  FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT. 

Bessie's  tones  show  she  is  in  an  awful  temper.  She 
now  cries,  "  If  you  don't  unlock  this  door  in  one 
second  I  shall  scream — *  Murder  !  '  '  this  is  a  faint 
yell. 

Anything  but  publicity.  Miss  Travers  throws 
open  the  portal,  and  wounded  affection  and  insulted 
pride  stand  in  front  of  her.  Miss  Bess  is  in  an  awful 
state. 

"How — how  dare  you  lock  me  in?"  she  stam 
mers  in  fury.  "  My — my  own  father  wouldn't  dare  to 
lock  me  in  !  One  would  think  you — you  were  Miss 
Prince —  The  lady  last  mentioned  is  her  former 
schoolmistress  and  about  the  only  being  who  rep 
resents  discipline  to  this  young  beauty,  who  has 
been  petted  and  humored  by  her  doting  father 
ever  since  her  dying  mother  placed  a  blue-eyed  baby 
in  his  arms. 

"  Well,"  says  Lilly,  who  has  heard  of  this  school 
tyrant  before,  "  suppose  you  imagine  me  Miss 
Prince  for  to-night,  and  go  to  bed;"  here  Miss 
Travers  tries  a  ghastly  smile. 

"  I — I  could  never  imagine  you  Miss  Prince," 
mutters  Bessie  savagely. 

"  And  why  not  ?  " 

"  Because  I  was  afraid  of  her,  and — you  don't 
frighten  me  a  little  bit !  " 

"  Please  go  to  bed — if  you  don't  I  won't  kiss  you 
in  the  morning,"  murmurs  Lilly,  attempting  a  bribe. 

"  You  won't !  you  needn't — you  SHA'N'T  kiss  me 
in  the  morning. — You  shall  never  kiss  me  again," 
cries  Bessie.  "  You  lock  me  in — you  go  prowling 
about  so  I  can't  sleep — you  won't  come  to  bed — 
you're  the  meanest  thing  on  earth — I — I  wouldn't 


A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT.  145 

treat— you — so  !  "  and  rage  turns  to  tears  that 
touch  Miss  Travers  to  the  heart. 

Her  voice  grows  very  tender  and  her  eyes  grow 
very  sad  and  she  gasps  out,  "  You — you  wouldn't 
reproach  me — if — if  you  knew  !  " 

"  Knew  what  ? "  Bessie's  blue  eyes  open  with 
interest. 

"  That  Jane's  going  to  be  arrested  in  the  morn 
ing." 

"  Arrested  !  For  what  ?  "  Bessie's  blue  eyes  blaze 
with  curiosity. 

"  For  thrashing  his — her  sweetheart  Gus  Duncan, 
the  second  man  in  the  Ponce  de  Leon  dining-room, 
because  he  wanted  to  kiss  her." 

"  What — that  highfalutin  darky  who  waves  you 
to  a  seat — Jane  whipped  him  I  Oh,  my  !  How — 
how  lovely !  "  and  Bessie,  who  sees  this  grand  dark 
mass  of  conceit  and  hauteur  coming  to  grief,  in  her 
vivacious  imagination,  becomes  very  merry. 

"  Oh,  you  laugh  !  It's  funny  to  travel  without 
one's  maid — and — and  look  at  my  trunks — How 
shall  I  ever  pack  them?" — Here  Miss  Travers  gives 
a  despairing  sigh  as  she  surveys  her  ravaged  boxes. 

"  Why,  what  ever  made  you  toss  your  things  out 
in  that  way?  " 

"  I  thought  I — I  had  lost  some  diamonds,"  mut 
ters  the  emancipated  one,  who  has  learnt  to  fib 
during  her  two  days'  manhood. 

"  And  you've  found  them  ?  " 

"  Yes." 

"Very  well,  I'll  help  you  pack  !  " 

"  Not  in  that  costume — you'll  catch  cold.  Jane's 
—  Jane's  coming  !  "  cries  Lilly  in  an  uneasy  tone. 

10 


146  A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT. 

"  All  right,  I'll  dress — I  love  packing  and  I  see 
some  divine  toilets  !  "  says  Bessie,  casting  her  eyes 
over  the  display  of  millinery  on  the  floor — and  with 
this  departs  to  her  own  room. 

A  few  minutes  after  as  Jane  and  Miss  Travers  are 
working  over  the  unpacked  trunks — Miss  Horton 
makes  her  reappearance  in  her  dress  of  the  evening 
before,  and  cuddling  up  in  a  warm  place  on  the  sofa, 
looks  on  and  criticises  and  babbles  and  finally  goes 
to  sleep,  to  awake  with  the  morning  sun  shining 
upon  her  and  making  a  halo  about  her  golden  head. 

Lilly  is  sitting  by  her  side  gazing  upon  the  girl's 
loveliness.  In  her  eyes  is  some  subtle  something 
that  appeals  to  dear  little  Bessie's  heart.  She  mur 
murs — "  I — I  love  you,  Lil,  though  you  treat  me 
badly.  You're  the  first  girl  who  ever  tried  to  boss 
me  that  I  didn't  hate.  You — you  are  going  away  ! 
Kiss  me." 

She  is  accommodated  vigorously  but  sadly.  Miss 
Travers'  boxes  ar :  all  corded  and  strapped.  And  that 
young  lady,  looking  at  her  watch,  says,  "  Why,  it's 
breakfast  time,"  and  in  a  few  minutes  they  are  both 
ready  to  go  down-stairs. 

As  they  get  to  the  door,  the  expressmen  arrive 
to  carry  away  Lilly's  baggage,  and  that  putative 
young  lady  says  severely,  "  Jane,  go  down  with  my 
.boxes  to  the  train." 

Whereupon  Bessie  whispers  excitedly,  "  She'll  be 
arrested." 

"No — I  think  not.  Your  father  has  already  pre 
vented  that,  I  hope.  He  is  an  early  riser,  and  hearing 
him  walking  about  I  asked  his  assistance," — replies 
Miss  Travers. 


A  FLORIDA  ENCHANTMENT.  147 

"  Then  Jane's  all  right  !  "  laughs  Bess,  who  has  a 
great  opinion  of  her  father's  general  potency. 

This  idea  is  borne  out  by  the  major's  entering  the 
breakfast  room  just  as  the  ladies  sit  down  and  re 
marking:  "Miss  Lilly,  that  hundred  dollar  bill  of 
yours  soothed  the  wounded  Gustavus'  feelings. — He 
will  not  swear  out  a  warrant,  though  he  swears  that 
he'll  never  marry  Jane." 

This  news  so  relieves  Miss  Travers  that  Bessie 
thinks  her  spirits  are  too  good  for  the  occasion  and 
remarks  reproachfully  :  "  Why,  you  are  happy  and 
yet  are  going  away  !  "  Which  brings  tears  to  Miss 
Connie's  eyes  and  to  Lilly's  also,  for  she  knows  that 
her  aunt  will  never  again  see  the  niece  she  has  loved 
so  well ; — and  as  she  parts  from  the  dear  old  lady, 
she  embraces  her  and  seems  loath  to  tear  herself 
away  from  her  arms,  for  it  is  to  her  like — the  parting 
of  death. 

But  trains  wait  for  no  man  nor  woman — and 
Lilly  and  Bessie  find  themselves  in  the  carnage 
ready  to  drive  to  the  depot ;  Miss  Connie  and  the 
major  remaining  behind — they  thinking  the  girls 
will  have  some  confidences  to  make  during  the 
drive. 

"  Come  back  soon,  Lilly,"  says  Constantia,  trying 
to  smile. 

"  Bess,  what  are  your  eyes  so  red  for?  "  asks  the 
major,  raising  his  hat. 

"  I  should  think  they  would  be  red — "  replies  his 
darling,  "  I  stayed  up  all  night !  " 

"  Good  Scott— What  for  ?  " 

"  Helping  Lilly  pack  !  " 

At   this  the  major  gives  the  late  Miss  Travers  a 


148  A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT. 

very  savage  and  reprimanding  glance  as  they  drive 
away.  But  the  journey  to  the  depot  is  a  short 
ten  minutes — and  Lilly  has  lots  to  say  and  hardly 
knows  how  to  say  it,  and  gets  to  talking  of  Law 
rence  Talbot  so  much  that  Bessie  says  petulantly — 
"  Put  him  away  till  next  time.  Tell  me  when 
you  are  coming  back — and  I — I've  something  for 
you — " 

"For  me?" 

"Yes.  Tell  me  how  you  like  '  a  silent  Bessie'  ?  " 
and  slipping  from  round  her  white  neck  a  little 
gold  chain  she  shows  to  Lilly's  eager  eyes  a  minia 
ture  of  her  own  face  with  smiling  violet  eyes  and 
golden  hair  and  says :  "  I  give  it  you — *  A  silent 
Bessie'!" 

"  You  darling  !  "  and  Lilly  kisses  first  the  picture 
and  then  the  original — and  would  do  so  much  more 
but  they  are  at  the  station. 

Here  they  find  Jane  in  her  mistress's  stateroom 
with  a  frightened,  dodgy  look  on  her  face — and  tak 
ing  her  to  one  side  Miss  Travers  whispers  :  "  I've 
saved  you  from  the  convict  gang — this  time — but  if 
you  don't  do  exactly  what  I  say  I'll  revive  the 
warrant  against  you  and  in  you  go  ! — Do  you  under 
stand,  my  man  !  " 

"  Yes  !  " — answers  Jane,  apparently  impressed. 

"  Now  leave  us  alone  !  "  orders  Lilly,  and  she  and 
Bess  have  a  tender  but  peculiar  five  minutes. 

"  Next  time  you  go  North  I'll  ask  father  to  let  me 
go  with  you — I  would  this  time  but  you've  fled  so 
suddenly  !  "  says  Bessie — then  she  mutters  :  "  You'll 
come  back,  Lil,  sure  in  a  month  !  "  and  her  compan 
ion  grows  very  sad  as  she  thinks  that  Bessie  must 


A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT.  149 

mourn  for  Lilly  Travers — for  they  will  never  meet 
again. 

She  says,  attempting  lightness  :  "  I'll  send  Law 
rence  Talbot  down  to  replace  me — Bessie,  you  will 
love  him  for  my  sake — Good-by  !  "  for  the  conductor 
has  called  "  All  aboard!  " 

"  Tell  me  you'll  come  back  soon  !  "  and  two  blue 
eyes  grow  desperate. 

«  ni_ril  try." 

"  That  won't  do — You'll  run  off  to  Europe  or 
something  awful  if  you  don't  promise — Promise  !  " 

"  All  aboard  for  the  last  time  !  "  The  bell  of  the 
locomotive  is  clanging  its  warning. 

"  You  must  go  now,  Bess."  Lilly  has  got  her  to 
the  platform  of  the  car.  Their  lips  meet  in  a  rage 
of  kisses  and  Bessie  is  on  the  wooden  walk  of  the 
station  trying  to  keep  up  with  the  moving  car  and 
crying,  "  Promise  you'll  come  back  soon!  " 

"  If  possible!" 

"  Promise.  Don't  go  away  and  not  promise.  The 
train's  moving  so  fast  !  " 

"  I'll  send  Lawrence  Talbot  to — 

But  here  Bessie  stops  running,  fire  flashes  from 
her  eyes,  she  stamps  her  little  feet  and  clenches  her 
dear  little  hands  and  gives  Miss  Travers  a  shock,  for 
she  screams  out,  "  I  hate  Lawrence  Talbot.  There  ! 
You  hear  me !  I  HATE  LAWRENCE  TALBOT  !  " 

And  so  the  train  parts  Lilly  Travers  forever  from 
Bessie  Horton  as  the  locomotive  turns  its  face  from 
Florida,  the  land  of  sunshine,  and  dashes  on  its  fiery 
path  for  far-away  New  York  and  February  snow 
and  ice, 

Miss  Travers  waves  a  last  adieu  and  then  steps 


150  A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT. 

into  her  stateroom  and  meditates  :  "  Wonder  if  I've 
overdone  Lawrence  Talbot ;  "  then  thinking  of  the 
sacred  seeds  that  have  disappeared,  the  only  path  to 
departed  womanhood,  she  mutters,  "  You're  on  the 
Lawrence  Talbot  side  of  the  fence,  and  that's  the  side 
that  leads  to  the  minister — I  rather  imagine  the  reason 
that  Bessie  Horton  thinks  so  much  of  Lilly  Travers 
is  because  Lilly  Travers  has  become  Lawrence  Tal 
bot." 


CHAPTER    XII. 

THE  MONSTER  BECOMES  DANGEROUS. 

THE  next  day,  as  dusk  is  falling  upon  New  York, 
the  Pennsylvania  Railroad  ferry  boat  brings  what 
is  called  Lillian  Travers,  and  what  is  named  Jane 
Rouser,  into  that  great  city.  The  two  are  very  tired, 
for  a  thirty-three  hours  railway  journey,  even  on  that 
most  luxurious  of  trains — "  the  Florida  Special  " — 
is  wearisome,  and  Miss  Travers  has  had  a  great  many 
precautions  to  take  during  this  trip,  that  are  not 
necessary  to  ordinary  travellers.  Besides  these  she 
has  been  compelled  to  keep  a  very  wary,  watchful 
and  suspicious  eye  upon  her  man  Jane,  who,  though 
confined  as  closely  as  it  is  possible,  to  the  stateroom, 
has  made  several  furtive  but  dangerous  attempts  to 
enter  into  a  flirtation  with  the  pretty  quadroon' 
stewardess  attached  to  this  sybaritic  train,  to  look 
after  the  special  wants  of  women. 

These,  with  two  or  three  other  erratic  perform 
ances  of  her  putative  maid,  such  as  his  answering 
promptly  "  Yes,  sir"  and  "  No,  sir"  at  various  inop- 


A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT.  151 

portune  times,  have  put  Lillian  into  a  nervous  frame 
of  mind. 

She  knows  she  has  made  an  unwise  move,  in  trans 
forming  her  faithful  maid-servant  Jane,  into  her  un 
ruly  man  "  Friday."  That  though  Jane  intends  to 
be  faithful  to  her  interests,  and  keep  the  secret,  still, 
instead  of  a  prim  lady's  maid,  she  is  now  a  head 
strong,  wild  and  harum-scarum  darky  boy,  with  that 
peculiar  addition  called  down  South  "  nigger- 
brains,"  at  this  time  peculiarly  dangerous  to  her 
from  its  idiotic  logic  and  extraordinary  syllogisms. 

During  the  last  few  hours  of  the  trip,  she  has 
got  to  thinking  Jane  once  more  "  her  monster  "  and 
likening  herself  to  Frankenstein  in  his  unfortunate 
experiment.  She  therefore  welcomes  the  sight  of 
633  Fifth  Avenue,  her  old  family  mansion,  which  is 
at  present  in  charge  of  the  cook,  a  darky  woman 
of  wondrous  potency  with  canvas-back  ducks,  and 
woful  avoirdupois.  This  lady  of  color  has  been 
left  in  charge  of  the  house,  Miss  Travers  wisely 
thinking  the  cook  the  nucleus  of  all  domestic  bliss. 

This  servitor,  having  been  notified  by  telegraph, 
admits  Miss  Lilly  and  her  maid. 

"  I  am  only  going  to  remain  for  a  few  days, 
Dinah,"  remarks  Lilly,  "  so  I  shall  not  add  to  my 
establishment.  An  omelet,  steak,  and  some  of  your 
coffee  and  rolls,  are  all  that  I  shall  want  here.  More 
elaborate  meals  I  shall  get  at  a  restaurant,'*  for  she 
knows  the  fewer  servants  in  the  house,  the  greater 
safety  to  her  secret. 

Then  Miss  Travers  goes  up-stairs,  and  after  get 
ting  a  shock  from  many  of  the  pretty  feminine  arti 
cles  in  her  dainty  boudoir,  that  remind  her  of  the 


I$2  A   FLORIDA    ENCHANTMENT. 

refined  femininity  that  she  had — but  has  no  more;  of 
the  womanhood  that  was — but  is  not,  turns,  and 
says  to  Jane  with  masculine  severity  :  "  A  few  words 
before  you  go  to  bed,  my  man.  First  of  all,  you 
are  still  to  be  a  woman." 

"  That  ain't  possible,  Mr. — Miss  Lilly." 

"  You  are  still  to  appear  a  woman  to  the  outside 
world." 

"  What — no  promenade  down  Srxth  Abenue  wid 
de  boys,  no  showin'  de  gals  what  a  han'some^youn' 
man  I  is  ?  "  mutters  Jane  ruefully,  he  having  appar- 
antly  laid  out  for  himself  what  might  be  called  "  a 
high  old  spree  "  upon  his  first  visit  to  New  York  as 
a  gentleman. 

u  Not  until  I  tell  you  to  ;  probably  not  till  we 
leave  New  York." 

At  this  disappointing  statement,  Jane  turns  away 
in  disgust,  his  master  adding  :  "  You  had  better  go 
to  bed  now  ;  you  are  tired  out.  So  am  I,  and  I 
have  lots  to  do  in  the  morning.  And  don't  you 
call  me  Mr.  Lilly  again,  as  you  value  your  situation." 

"  No,  sir — yes,  miss,"  answers  Jane  hurriedly  and 
disappears. 

The  next  morning,  Miss  Travers,  who  has  appar 
ently  made  up  her  mind  what  to  do,  sets  about  it 
with  energy  and  rapidity. 

She  drives  to  Tiffany's  and  selects  a  ring  that  she 
knows  will  make  Bessie's  heart  glad.  This  being  sent 
home  to  her  later  in  the  day,  she  forwards  to  Miss 
Horton  with  a  little  note  saying,  "  Dear  Bess,  I  send 
you  this  in  return  for  '  the  silent  Bessie/  You  will 
see  it  has  engraved  on  it  (  To  B.  H.  from  L.  T.' — By 
the  by,  L,  T,  stands  for  Lawrence  Talbot  as  well 


A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT.  I  $3 

as  Lilly  Travers. — Why  not  consider  it  an  engage 
ment  ring  from  him  ?  " 

Meantime  she  has  called  upon  her  lawyer,  and 
incidentally  looking  over  her  securities,  found  a 
good  portion  is  in  convertible  bonds.  This  is  satis 
factory  to  her.  She  asks  that  gentleman  a  few  ques 
tions,  and  then  departs  in  search  of  further  informa 
tion.  This  she  picks  up  deftly,  in  the  course  of  the 
next  day  or  two,  from  various  friends  of  hers — 
brokers,  real  estate  speculators,  etc.,  by  feminine 
questions,  aided  by  a  masculine  fixed  purpose. 

Some  of  her  queries,  however,  are  of  a  very 
astonishing  nature  to  be  put  by  a  Fifth  Avenue 
belle,  and  one  of  her  friends,  a  stock  broker,  in 
cidentally  remarks  at  his  club,  that  he  thinks 
"  Lilly  Travers  is  going  into  business.  By  Jove  ! 
the  way  she  asked  me  about  convertible  securities, 
unindorsed  stock,  and  non-registered  governments, 
made  me  think  she'd  got  Wall  Street  in  her  eye. 
Perhaps  she's  a  coming  Hetty  Green,  and'll  make 
me  her  broker.  I  wonder  how  long  it  would  take 
her  to  get  away  with  the  million  and  a  half  that's 
been  left  to  her  by  the  old  gentleman." 

And,  in  fact,  Miss  Travers  seems  to  be  bent  upon 
getting  away  with  her  fortune.  She  instructs  her 
real  estate  brokers  to  sell  all  her  realty  in  New  York. 
They  open  their  eyes  at  her  orders,  but  do  her  bid 
ding,  Miss  Travers  being  her  own  mistress,  and  any 
conveyances  she  may  make  perfectly  valid  and  good. 

This  is  very  shortly  done,  for  New  York  realty 
well  located,  is  a  very  convertible  asset,  and  though 
she  loses  a  slight  percentage  upon  its  actual  value, 
still  being  willing  to  make  a  sacrifice  for  speed  in 


154  A  FLORIDA  ENCHANTMENT. 

transfer,  she  gets  it  in  a  surprisingly  short  space  of 
time,  the  lawyers  making  the  examinations  of  title, 
being  spurred  on  by  a  liberal  douceur,  accompanied 
by  the  statement  that  Miss  Travers  wishes  to 
hurry  the  business  as  much  as  possible,  on  account 
of  her  intended  departure  from  New  York.  These 
transfers  are  made  and  the  money  paid  into  Miss 
Travers'  account. 

Meantime  she  has  converted  all  registered  secur 
ities  into  cash,  and  has  abstracted  the  stones  con 
tained  in  the  family  jewels  from  their  old  settings, 
for  she  wishes  to  obliterate  everything  that  can 
tend,  by  any  means  whatsoever,  to  the  suspicion 
that  Lilly  Travers  has  been  generous  to  Lawrence 
Talbot. 

She  looks  in  the  glass  each  morning,  into  the 
smiling,  bold,  and  rapidly  becoming  masculine  face 
of  the  young  gentleman  who  nods  back  at  her,  and 
says  :  "  I'm  going  to  treat  you  very  well,  my  young 
man,  for  Bessie's  sake.  You  shall  be  very  rich — 
almost  as  rich  as  Lillian  Travers  was.  I  can't  give 
you  real  estate  ;  that  would  force  you  to  be  identi 
fied,  and  you  are  unknown  to  every  one  but  me.  I 
can't  make  a  will  in  your  favor,  for  it  might  be 
disputed  by  envious  relatives,  who  would  say  I  was 
insane  to  leave  to  you — even  handsome  fellow  that 
you  are — my  property,  from  my  kindred.  Conse 
quently,  I've  got  to  give  you  unregistered  govern 
ment  bonds,  my  boy,  and  you  can  re-invest  them 
carefully  for  yourself  and  Bessie." 

And  then  the  handsome  young  gentleman  smiles 
back  at  her,  and  says :  "  Thank  you,  Miss  Travers. 
You're  uncommon  good  to  an  unknown  fellow  like 


A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENt.  155 

me.  I'll  try  and  make  myself  comfortable  upon 
your  liberal  donation."  And  the  two  laugh  and 
shake  hands  together,  and  have  a  very  pleasant  time, 
one  with  the  other. 

Until  suddenly,  some  new  idea  coming  into  the 
young  lady's  mind,  she  shakes  her  fist  at  the  gentle 
man,  scowls  at  him,  and  says  threateningly :  "  If  you 
don't  treat  Bessie  well,  look  out  for  me  !  Lawrence 
Talbot,  Lilly  Travers  is  going  to  be  your  mother-in- 
law  !  "  and  so  turns  away  laughing,  to  do  a  great 
piece  of  work  for  the  young  gentleman  this  day. 

She  goes  to  the  Central  Safe  Deposit  Company, 
and  there  engages  one  of  the  larger  boxes,  such  as 
are  fitted  with  combination  locks,  paying  the  year's 
rent  in  advance. 

She  enters  her  name  on  the  books  of  the  institu 
tion  as  requested  and  says: 

"  I  wish  to  make  this  deposit  box  open  to  myself 
and  one  other,  Mr.  Lawrence  M.  Talbot.  I  shall 
be  away  from  New  York,  but  Mr.  Talbot  will  bring 
a  letter  of  introduction  from  me  to  you  ;  he  will 
also  give  you  the  pass-word  :  *  My  turn  next  ! '  This 
is  his  signature  ; "  and  she  hands  them  a  card, 
upon  which  she  has  already  written  in  as  masculine 
hand  'as  she  can  command  :  "  Lawrence  M.  Tal 
bot." 

She  goes  over  these  methods  of  introduction  and 
recognition,  that  Lawrence  Talbot  will  have,  with 
the  Safe  Company's  officers,  so  that  there  can  be.  no 
mistake,  telling  them  Mr.  Talbot  will  also  receive 
from  her  the  combination  of  the  lock  to  the  box  she 
has  engaged,  which  will  be  an  additional  proof  of  his 
identity.  This  shall  be  all  the  identification  they 


I  $6  A  FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT. 

can  require  from  Mr.  Talbot,  as  she  will  be  out  of 
town,  and  he  has  no  friends,  she  thinks,  in  America. 

All  this  being  very  definitely  and  accurately  set 
tled,  through  various  brokers  she  converts  her  whole 
fortune,  with  the  exception  of  a  few  thousand  dollars, 
into  unregistered  U.  S.  Government  bonds,  and  this 
being  done,  in  the  course  of  a  few  days,  she  deposits 
them  in  the  box  in  the  Central  Safe  Deposit  Com 
pany,  which  is  open  to  Mr.  Lawrence  Talbot,  as 
well  as  to  herself. 

All  this  has  been  accomplished  with  as  much 
speed  as  the  transaction  of  the  business  will  permit, 
for  she  is  spurred  on  by  the  following  letter,  that  is 
addressed  u  Miss  Lillian  Travers  "  and  post-marked 
"  St.  Augustine,  Florida,"  and  is  in  Bessie's  pretty 
and  feminine  handwriting.  It  reads  : 

ST.  AUGUSTINE,  February  gth,  1891. 
DEAR  LILLY  : 

Your  lovely,  lovely  present  is  here,  and  I  have  been  thinking 
about  you  all  night  ;  not  of  my  present,  but  of  your  letter.  Some 
how  I've  cried  over  it.  Its  words  were  cheery  but  its  tone  gave  me 
the  shivers  !  It  seemed  almost  to  say  '  Adieu  ! '  to  me.  It  didn't 
say  it,  but  it  seemed  to  say  it.  But  then,  you  know,  I  am  a  creature 
of  impulse — and  perhaps  it  didn't  say  anything  of  the  kind,  except 
to  my  excited  longing  for  your  quick  return.  Besides  I  have  thought 
over  it  all  night,  and  have  just  got  the  clue,  and  I  think  you're  the 
meanest  creature  in  the  world  not  to  tell  me  about  it  before.  I  have 
just  been  reading  a  Jacksonville  paper  which  says  in  its  horrid 
society  news  that  the  beautiful  and  accomplished  New  York  heiress, 
Miss  Lillian  Travers,  has  gone  to  New  York  to  order  her  trousseau, 
for  her  approaching  marriage  with  Doctor  Frederick  Cassadene,  the 
distinguished  and  popular  physician  at  the  Ponce  de  Leon  Hotel. 

If  this  is  so  (and  I  don't  believe  it)  write  me  at  once.  Any  way 
I  know  the  report  will  make  that  beautiful  Mrs.  Lovejoy  very  angry. 
She  is  so  very — but  oh,  I  must  be  careful,  especially  if  you're  en 
gaged  to  him.  I'll  turn  to  another  subject — myself.  Perhaps  you'd 


A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT.  157 

like  to  hear  a  little  bit  about  Bessie.  Bessie  is  getting  along  very 
well.  She  has  a  very  nice  time.  She  has  lots  of  beaux — one  of 
them  in  particular,  is  very  nice — so  you  needn't  send  Mr.  Lawrence 
Talbot  down  here  at  all.  But  please  come  yourself,  right  off — as 
soon  as  possible,  immediately — for  I  shall  not  be  happy  until  I  hear 
your  voice  again.  Papa  was  very  angry  at  your  keeping  me  up  all 
night,  packing  your  trunks  ;  he  has  forgiven  you  by  this  time,  at  my 
intercession,  and  sends  you  his  love.  I  know  Miss  Connie  does  the 
same  also,  and  so  do  I — lots  of  it — from 

Your  loving 

BESSIE. 

P.  S. — How  do  you  like  "  the  silent  Bessie  "  ?  Is  she  behaving  her 
self,  well  ?  I  send  you  the  enclosed  notice. 

The  newspaper  clipping  reads  : 

It  is  reported  on  the  best  authority,  that  Miss  Lillian  Travers, 
the  lovely  and  fascinating  New  York  heiress,  who  has  spent  several 
of  her  springs  among  Florida  orange  groves,  is  shortly  to  become  a 
real  Floridian,  by  marrying  Doctor  Frederick  Cassadene,  the  very 
accomplished  and  popular  physician  of  the  Ponce  de  Leon. 

Our  reporter  mentioned  this  rumor  to  the  Doctor,  who  smiled,  and 
looked  as  men  always  do,  when  they  expect  to  become  benedicts, 
though  he  refused  to  commit  himself.  In  support  however,  of  our 
statement,  Miss  Travers  has  gone  to  New  York,  suddenly,  with  the 
intention  it  is  understood,  of  ordering  such  a  trousseau  as  only  a  New 
York  heiress  can  order.  We  presume  some  of  these  beautiful  toi 
lettes  will  be  seen  in  the  parlors  of  the  Ponce  de  Leon  before  the 
season  closes,  as  we  understand  that  the  wedding  is  to  take  place 
before  the  end  of  March. 

Over  this  notice  Lilly  bursts  into  laughter;  but 
Bessie's  remarks  about  beaux,  and  that  Mr.  Law 
rence  Talbot's  appearance  will  not  be  necessary,  give 
her  a  fit  of  the  blues,  and  the  late  Miss  Travers 
knows  that  masculine  jealousy  is  as  potent  a  factor 
of  misery  and  anxiety  as  feminine  jealousy. 

She  is  also  incited  to  further    speed  by    two  or 


158  A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT. 

three  ominous  occurrences  that  have  taken  place, 
from  time  to  time,  which  indicate  that  if  she  does  not 
change  from  the  feminine  to  the  masculine  mode  of 
life,  of  her  own  volition,  Providence  will  change  it 
for  her. 

A  moustache,  day  by  day,  to  her  dread,  but  also 
to  her  pride,  becomes  beautifully  developed.  Not 
daring"  to  trust  to  a  barber's  skill,  she  has  been  com- 

o 

pelled  to  try  her  own,  and  her  first  shave  has  been 
a  gory  operation,  and  is  not  considered  a  success. 

Besides  this,  on  cashing  a  check  the  paying  teller, 
who  knows  her  very  well  by  sight  looks  up  and 
says  :  "  Ah  !  personal  application  !  " 

"  What  does  that  matter  ?  "  she  asks. 

"  Well,  if  you  had  not  brought  it  in  person,  Miss 
Travers,  I  should  not  have  paid  it." 

"  Is  not  my  account  good  ?  " 

"  Perfectly — very  good  !  "  with  a  great  emphasis 
on  the  very.  "  But  to  tell  you  the  truth,  this  signa 
ture  does  not  seem  to  be  exactly  that  of  a  woman." 

"  Indeed  ?  "  she  says,  struggling  to  restrain  the 
agitation  that,  despite  herself,  flies  into  her  face. 
"  What  is  it  then  ?  " 

"  Why,  it  looks  like  the  signature  of  a  man." 

"  Ah  !  delighted  to  hear  that  !  "  she  returns,  forc 
ing  a  smile.  "  I'm  trying  to  make  myself  a  business 
woman,  and  a  masculine  handwriting  will  perhaps 
assist  me  ! " 

But  all  these  portentous  incidents  are  as  nothing, 
to  the  dread  and  horror  brought  upon  her  by  her 
man  Jane. 

She  has  driven  home  one  evening,  after  a  hard 
day's  work  in  making  her  various  business  arrange- 


A  FLORIDA  ENCHANTMENT.  159 

ments,  when  as  she  steps  out  of  her  coupe",  about 
nine  o'clock  in  the  evening,  the  night  watchman, 
chancing  to  pass  by,  salutes  her. 

He  says  respectfully  :  "  Miss  Travers,  can  I  say  a 
word  to  you  ?  " 

"  Certainly  !  "  she  replies.  Something  in  his  tone 
giving  her  alarm,  and  fortunately  putting  her  on  her 
guard. 

He  asks :  "  Have  you  a  negro  man  in  your  em 
ploy?" 

A  sudden  instinct  prompts  her  to  gasp  "  Yes  !— 
my  maid—  '  then  getting  confused  she  corrects 
hersel-f  and  murmurs  :  "  I  mean,  my  valet — my  foot 
man.  Why  did  you  ask  ?  " 

"  Well,  Miss  Travers,"  says  the  watchman,  "  quite 
often,  early  in  the  morning — a  negro  man  lets  him 
self  into  your  house.  I  supposed  he  was  some 
sweetheart  of  one  of  your  servants,  but  still  I 
thought  it  was  best  to  ask.  Now  that  I  know  he  is 
in  your  employ,  it  is  all  right." 

"  I'm  very  much  obliged  to  you,"  remarks  Lilly. 
"  Please  take  this  for  your  care  of  my  interests  ;  "  and 
pressing  a  liberal  tip  into  the  watchman's  hand,  she 
goes  up  the  stairs,  enters  the  house,  and  mutters  to 
herself  these  feminine  words  :  "  Damn  him  !  It's 
that  infernal  Jane,  I  know.  I'll  fix  him  to-night ! " 

That  evening  she  kills  time  by  a  novel  and  think 
ing  of  Bessie.  At  eleven  o'clock,  she  investigates 
Jane's  room.  That  putative  maid-servant  is  not  in. 
Then  she  sits  down  in  her  abigail's  apartment  and 
waits — and  waits — and  then  waits. 

As  the  clock  strikes  two,  she  gets  what  she  is 
waiting  for — a  sensation,  and  would  scream,  were 


l6o  A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT. 

she  a  woman,  but  being  a  man,  she  stands,  gazes 
and  gasps,  for  with  a  flippant  air,  and  a  smile  of  tri 
umph  on  his  face,  and  two  or  three  chuckles  on  his 
lips,  a  typical  Sixth  Avenue  darky  dude  enters  the 
apartment. 

With  flashing  eyes  Lilly  cries:  uWhat  are  you 
here  for?  Out  of  my  house  this  instant  !  Are  you 
a  sweetheart  of  Jane's  ?" 

"  Whaugh  !  whaugh  ! — I'se  Jane  hersel' !  "  cries 
the  dude  and  bursts  into  a  guffaw.  "  'Clare  to 
goodness — oh  Lawdy !  yo'  didn't  know  me,  Mr. 
Lilly." 

"  I  know  you  now  !  So  you've  been  masquerad 
ing  about  in  men's  clothes,  night  after  night,  to 
destroy  my  secret,  my  happiness,  my  life  !  "  Lilly 
mutters,  a  fearful  intensity  in  her  tones,  and  the 
ferocity  of  despair  in  her  manner. 

"  Got  to  wear  dis  kind  o'  clothes,  Mr.  Lilly. 
'Gin  de  law  to  wear  any  oder ! " 

"  Never  you  mind  what  the  law  is.  My  law  is 
that  you  are  still  my  maid-servant,  till  I  permit  you 
to  assume  the  sex  I  gave  you." 

"  Yo'  can't  turn  me  back  into  a  woman  agin,  any 
way,  Mr.  Lilly,"  remarks  Jane,  with  a  grin. 

"  No,  but  I  will  send  you  to  the  Florida  convict- 
camp.  I'll  get  Gus  to  revive  his  warrant  against 
you." 

"  Guess  dat  wouldn't  go,"  remarks  Jane,  with  a 
grin.  "  Gus'll  swear  a  woman  whipped  him — I'll 
prove  I'se  a  man.  Golly,  I'se  got  yo'  dar.  I'se  been 
gettin'  pints  on  de  abenue." 

"  My  Heaven  !  Have  you  told  any  one  ?  "  gasps 
Miss  Travers,  turning  very  pale. 


A  FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT.  l6l 

"  No — no — but  I'se  been  gettin'  pints  without 
tellin',  and  I'se  diskivered  that  I'se  worth  a  thou- 
san'  dollars  a  week,  to  a  dime  museum,  as  de 
greatest  freak  on  earth  !  " 

"  Very  well !  "  cries  Lilly  desperately.  "  Go  to 
your  dime  museum,  and  tell  them  your  story,  and 
they'll  put  you  in  an  insane  asylum — that's  where 
'  the  greatest  freak  on  earth  '  will  land.  Who  would 
believe  you  ?  " 

"  Believe  me  !  They'se  got  to  believe  me  !  "  mut 
ters  Jane  excitedly.  "  I'll  prove  it  by  DE  SEEDS  !  " 
He  makes  an  attempt  to  choke  the  last  word  in  his 
throat,  but  is  too  late ! 

With  the  power  born  of  desperation,  the  late  Miss 
Travers  is  upon  him.  She  has  thrown  him  down. 
Her  hands  are  at  his  throat.  She  chokes  him  till 
he  is  gray  in  the  face.  Then  she  mutters  slowly  : 
"  Give  me  those  seeds,  or  I  will  kill  you  !  Tell  me 
where  they  are  !  " 

"  'Deed,  Miss  Lilly— 

"  Never  mind  about  your  '  deeds  ' — tell  me  where 
the  seeds  are  !  "  and  she  emphasizes  her  command 
by  producing  her  pistol. 

"  Dey  is  hid  in  one  of  my  ol'  stockin's  in  de  bot 
tom  of  my  trunk  ! — Please — please  let  me  git  some 
wind !  " 

"  Very  well — get  them  ! "  and  Jane,  who  is  appar 
ently  subdued,  sullenly  fishes  them  out  from  this 
odd  receptacle,  and  Lilly  once  more  has  the  little 
vial  with  its  two  magic  seeds  in  her  possession  that 
sparkle  in  amber  beauty.  She  looks  on  them 
gloatingly — lovingly. — They  seem  to  give  her  new 
power. 

ii 


1 62  A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT. 

"  Why  did  you  take  these?"  she  asks. 

"  'Cause  yo'  said  if  I  didn't  behave  myself  yo'd 
turn  me  back  into  a  woman  agin,  and  I  wasn't  goin' 
to  habe  one  of  dose  things  forced  down  my  throat, 
and  I  won't  habe  it  now.  I'll  go  away  from  yo' 
fust,"  cries  Jane  savagely. 

"  Promise  to  obey  me  and  I  will  promise  to  let 
you  remain  as  you  are,  though  I  don't  think  you  are 
an  improvement  upon  my  obedient  and  faithful 
maid-servant,  Jane.  Any  way  you  won't  have  to 
remain  as  my  maid  much  longer.  We  leave  New 
York  soon,  and  in  a  few  days  you  shall  be  no 
more  my  maid  Jane  Rouser,  but  my  man,  Jack 
Robbins!  " 

"An'  yo',  Miss  Lilly,  what'll  yo'  be?"  mutters 
Jane. 

"  I  shall  be  Mr.  Lawrence  Talbot !  " 

This  name  evidently  impresses  Jane.  He  mut 
ters  :  "  'Pears  to  me,  as  you  habe  done  such  mighty 
high  work  for  yo'self,  yo'  could  do  a  little  better 
fo'  me,  Mis'  Lilly  ?  " 

"  No.  Jack  Robbins  is  good  enough  for  you," 
remarks  the  master,  sternly. 

Then,  after  a  few  more  admonitions  and  direc 
tions,  she  goes  away  and  carefully  securing  the  glass 
vial  with  its  potent  seeds  in  a  little  bag  she  hangs 
about  her  neck  by  a  thin  golden  chain  she  gets 
ready  for  bed.  While  doing  this  a  mocking  smile  is 
on  her  lips,  she  sneers,  "  I  wonder  how  much  a  dime 
museum  would  give  for  me?  "  then  shudders  :  "  My 
monster,  Jane,  will  destroy  me.  Like  Franken 
stein,  I  have  raised  him  up  to  be  my  ruin  ! " 

And  this  idea  running  in  her  head,  she  goes  to 


A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT.  1O^ 

sleep,  and  has  a  fearful  nightmare  ;  and  sees  three- 
sheet  posters  like  the  following,  in  gigantic  type  and 
lurid  characters  covering  all  the  city  walls  and  bill 
boards. 


THE  FREAK  OF  ALL  ACES! 


TMJU 

WOMAN 
MAN! 


_  LAWRENCE  TALBOT  n6e  LILLIAN  TRAVERS.  _ 

Only  One  More  Seed  Left.    BID  HIGH  I 

$3?OQO,OOO  Offered 

A  female  member  of  the  Rothschild  family  bought  the  previous 
one  and  has  just  been  voted  into  the 

PARISIAN  JOCKEY  CLUB. 

The  richest  widow  in  New  York  is  in  negotiation  for  the  LAST  Seed. 


Also  a 


SN  who  wants  to  be  a, 
KING  before  she  dies, 


3 


FERFORHAITCES 
A  DAY 


In  conjunction  with 
The  Missing  I*ink  and 

The  Living  Skeleton. 


164  A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT. 

CHAPTER    XIII. 

DOCTOR   FRED   WOULD    LIKE   A   KISS. 

ALL  these  considerations  urge  desperate  haste. 
Lilly  forces  the  last  few  remaining  -preparations  for 
her  departure,  finding  time,  however,  to  initiate 
her  maid  Jane  into  acting  her  man  Jack.  Every 
morning,  they  rehearse. 

Miss  Lilly  calls  in  authoritative  gruff  voice:  "  My 
shaving  water,  Jack  !  " 

"  Yes,  Mr.  Lawrence,"  replies  Jane. 

Or :  "  Put  cigars  and  whiskey  on  the  table, 
Robbins." 

"  Yes,  Mr.  Lawrence  ;  "  and  Jane  doing  as  she  is 
bid,  places  cigars,  cigarettes  and  fiery  spirits  on  the 
table,  which  Lilly,  by  way  of  educating  herself  to 
her  new  manhood,  forces  herself  to  indulge  in, 
though  she  hates  the  taste  of  whiskey,  and  the 
cigars  make  her  very  sick. 

One  of  these  petites  comedies  is  taking  place  when 
she  is  startled  by  the  cook  bringing  up  to  her  an 
epistle  in  a  masculine  hand  which  she  easily  recog 
nizes  as  that  of  her  erstwhile  fiance.  It  is  a  hastily 
written,  impulsive  letter,  of  the  discarded  suitor 
style ;  full  of  wild  outcries  of  wounded  love,  com 
plaints  and  reproaches.  For,  after  the  manner  of 
his  kind,  Doctor  Freddie  has  got  to  longing  and 
mourning  and  suffering  for  lack  of  the  love  he  has 
destroyed,  and  Lilly  T ravers  now  seems  to  him  the 
only  woman  who  can  ever  make  his  life  happy. 
This  he  tells  her  in  his  letter,  the  conclusion  of 
which  is  so  dictatorial  that  it  is  scarcely  polite.  It 


A  FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT.  l6$ 

says :  "  If  you  do  not  return  to  Florida  very  soon, 
I  shall  go  to  New  York  after  you.  You  remember 
my  boast,  Lilly — within  four  weeks  you  shall  be  the 
bride  of  Yours  till  death,  FRED." 

The  first  part  of  this  epistle  produces  a  smile ; 
the  latter  part  causes  consideration,  even  concern. 
Doctor  Cassadene  hanging  round  the  skirts  of  Miss 
Lilly  Travers  will  embarrass  her  preparations  to 
become  Mr.  Lawrence  Talbot  ! 

This  is  another  motive  for  speedy  departure 
from  New  York,  which  place  has  been  getting 
gradually  distasteful  to  her.  She  longs  to  enter 
society  as  one  of  the  sex  into  which  she  has  grad 
uated,  and  cannot  do  it. 

She  has  got  to  muttering  to  herself  savagely  :  "  I 
am  tired  of  being  a  hermit." 

As  she  drives  down  Fifth  Avenue,  she  has  fallen 
into  the  habit  of  looking  at  the  club  buildings  of 
this  most  clubby  street  and  thinking  she  would  like 
to  sit  in  their  windows,  like  other  male  bipeds,  and 
enjoy  the  feminine  beauty  that  passes  in  parade  in 
front  of  them,  while  sybaritic  man  gazes  on,  enjoy 
ing  cigars,  cocktails  and  other  frivolities  peculiar  to 
the  sterner  sex,  that  she  is  getting  gradually  to  like 
with  the  love  of  the  manhood  that  has  come  to  her. 

Driving  past  the  Manhattan,  the  New  York,  or 
the  Union,  she  mutters  :  "  I'll  be  put  up  there  some 
day;  I'll  sit  in  that  window  and  that  chair  myself." 

She  has  a  tremendous  hankering  after  the  de 
lights  of  Delmonicos'  cafe,  sacred  to  gentlemen. 
She  has  even  wild  ideas  of  donning  some  of  Mr. 
Lawrence  Talbot's  new  clothes  and  "  doing"  Kos- 
ter  &  Bial's,  or  taking  a  merry  little  spree  on  the 


1 66  A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT. 

Bowery,  and  would  do  her  will,  did  she  not  dread 
that  such  adventures  might  lead  to  the  revelation 
of  her  secret. 

Actuated  by  these  motives  and  impelled  by  a 
great  longing  to  see  Miss  Bessie  Horton,  Lillian 
Travers  makes  her  final  preparations  to  depart  for 
ever  from  life  as  a  woman  and  enter  upon  the  glori 
ous  manhood  that  is  before  her,  for  which  she 
longs  as  a  child  does  for  a  new  toy. 

She  surreptitiously  expresses  to  Orlando  in  South 
ern  Florida  two  large  trunks  addressed  "  Lawrence 
Talbot,  Esq., — to  be  retaineo!  till  called  for,"  and 
looks  gloatingly  at  the  name  as  the  boxes  are 
carted  *  away. 

Her  fortune,  now  almost  entirely  in  non-regis 
tered  bonds,  is  in  the  vaults  of  the  Central  Deposit 
Company,  ready  to  open  to  Lawrence  Talbot's 
greedy  hand,  the  moment  he  appears.  She  makes 
a  last  visit  to  that  institution,  and  deposits  every 
thing  of  value  that  belongs  to  Lilly  Travers,  save 
one  little  article  that  she  cannot  find  it  in  her  heart 
to  give  up  ;  for  "  The  Silent  Bessie "  has  been  a 
great  comfort  to  her  in  the  absence  of  the  chatter 
ing  one.  She  looks  upon  the  beautiful  face  of  the 
miniature  that  smiles  at  her  from  its  surrounding 
circlet  of  pearls,  and  mutters  to  herself:  "  My  little 
sweetheart,  I'll  take  you  with  me.  It  will  be  a  risk; 
but  for  your  sake  I'd  risk  everything  but  being  a 
woman  again  ! "  and  so  pockets  it. 

The  next  morning,  booked  as  Miss  Lillian  Trav 
ers  of  New  York,  with  three  thousand  dollars  in 
large  bills  in  her  pocket-book,  she  takes  passage  on 
the  Florida  Special,  accompanied  by  her  maid  Jane, 


A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT.  167 

and,  arriving  at  Jacksonville,  stops  at  that  thriving 
town.  For,  after  a  great  struggle  with  herself,  she 
has  made  up  her  mind  another  parting  with  Miss 
Connie  would  be  too  dangerous  as  well  as  too  pain 
ful  to  her. 

She  mutters  ta  herself :  "  Lillian  Travers  has 
passed  out  of  my  loved  ones'  lives.  Let  us  see 
if  Lawrence  Talbot  cannot  make  up  her  loss  to 
them." 

She  lingers  in  Jacksonville  one  day,  fighting  with 
the  various  emotions  that  are  in  her  and  seeming 
to  hesitate  at  leaving  every  friend  she  has  on  earth 
and  casting  herself  alone  upon  the  world  with  her 
new  manhood  for  her  only  support. 

Then  she  desperately  takes  train  for  Ocala,  having 
determined  that  she  will  make  the  trip  down  the 
Ocklawaha  River,  for  a  very  curious  idea  has  grad 
ually  formed  itself  in  the  last  few  weeks  in  Miss 
Travers'  mind  in  regard  to  that  cypress-shadowed, 
alligator-haunted  region,  which  she  is  now  about  to 
execute. 

She  journeys  leisurely  by  way  of  Palatka,  and  at 
Hawthorne  changes  to  the  Florida  Central  and 
Peninsular  Railroad  and  passes  down  the  eastern 
side  of  Orange  Lake  to  Citra;  remaining  at  this 
place  over  night  and  inspecting,  next  morning,  the 
beautiful  orange  groves  that  here  grow  in  the  wild 
luxuriance  of  a  forest,  dotted  with  other  trees  to 
make  them  look  the  work  of  nature,  not  of  man 
as  they  are,  for  the  sweet  oranges  of  the  East  have 
been  budded  upon  the  wild  and  bitter  native  trees 
of  Florida,  and  the  groves  still  have  the  irregularity 
and  beauty  of  the  wild-wood. 


1 68  A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT. 

She  has  an  object  in  this  apparent  leisurely  travel. 
She  wishes  to  appear  simply  as  being  on  a  pleasure 
tour,  so  that  when  ill-adventure  comes  to  Miss 
Travers  the  world  will  think  it  is  accident,  not  de 
sign.  But  this  plan  brings  with  it  delay  and  delays 
are  dangerous.  >•# 

Leaving  Citra,  she  finds  herself  at  Ocala  the  same 
day,  accompanied  by  the  faithful  Jane,  who  has 
grown  very  much  excited  during  this  trip  and  who 
frequently  asks  her  with  an  agitated  guffaw,  "  When 
is  it  comin'  ?  What  time  does  de  change  take 
place  ?  When  is  we  goin'  to  use  de  new  clo'es  ?  " 
and  other  remarks  that  make  her  mistress  nervous 
and  excited  also.  Here  she  puts  up  at  the  well- 
known  hotel  which  has  been  christened  after  this 
town. 

A  sleepless  night — the  last  she  will  pass  in 
woman's  night  gear — and  she  is  up  early  the  next 
morning  to  take  the  train  for  Silver  Spring.  On 
this  trip  she  brings  with  her  only  a  small  trunk 
which  Jane  easily  carries,  for  the  Ocklawaha  boats 
have  but  limited  accommodation  for  baggage  in  their 
staterooms,  which  are  little  bigger  than  Saratogas 
themselves. 

A  few  minutes  of  railroad  and  she  looks  on  the 
fairy  beauty  of  the  great  Silver  Spring,  once  thought 
the  fountain-of-eternal-youth,  to  find  which  Ponce  de 
Leon  journeyed  till  he  died — these  wondrous  living 
waters  that  spring  a  full-grown  river  from  the  earth. 

This  dazzling  stream  that  in  its  tossing  ofttimes 
magnifies  the  things  that  lie  on  its  sandy  bottom 
and  the  fish  that  swim  within  its  crystal  ;  these 
weird  half-tone  shadows  from  the  cypress  on  its 


A  FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT.  169 

banks ;  these  living  waters  that  are  liquid-ether  as 
they  bubble  from  the  grottos  that  give  out  the 
purple  tints  ;  all  seem  of  another  and  unreal,  though 
perchance  a  happier  state,  to  this  being,  who,  still 
calling  herself  Lilly  Travers,  is  living  a  life  no  other 
being  ever  lived  before. 

But  she  has  short  time  to  gaze  astonished, — the 
train  has  scarcely  run  upon  the  little  wharf  before 
the  steamer  blows  its  whistle,  and  freight  and  lug 
gage  and  passengers  being  hurried  on  board,  the 
pygmy  Okahumpka,  her  stern  wheel  revolving,  is 
gliding  out  from  her  landing,  past  "  The  Ladies' 
Parlor"  and  "  The  Gentlemen's  Smoking-room" — 
fountains  of  weird,  cloud-like  water,  but  of  earthy 
name — and  darting  down  this  marvellous  river, 
whose  silver  stream  within  a  few  miles  will  be  swal 
lowed  in  the  slimy,  blackish  oozes  of  the  swamp- 
born  Ocklawaha. 

Water  ethereal  supports  the  tiny  steamer,  and 
Lilly  Travers,  looking  over  its  side,  for  a  moment 
grows  dizzy  and  staggers  back — thinking  she  is  an 
aeronaut  ;  for  the  boat  seems  like  a  balloon  with 
air  above  her  and  air  beneath  her.  A  mom.ent  after 
she  calms  her  nerves,  and  standing  on  the  upper 
deck  gazes  at  the  panorama  through  which  she 
passes — long  vistas  of  cypress  trees,  rising  from 
this  glassy  water  mirror  like  giant  storks'  legs  to 
their  canopy  of  green  and  moss  above. 

Impressed  by  her  strange  position  she  thinks : 
"  Like  Ponce  de  Leon,  who  came  to  find  youth,  I 
have  come  here  to  find  manhood.  He  failed  and 
died.  Shall  I  be  disappointed  also?" — and  looking 
at  the  clear,  living  stream  upon  which  she  is  float- 


A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT. 


ing  and  which  in  an  hour  will  become  dark  and 
turbid,  wonders  -if  this  is  allegorical  of  her  coming 
change. 

Her  meditation  is  broken  in  upon  by  a  most 
unexpected  contretemps.  A  masculine  voice  comes 
to  her  ears  with  a  recognition  that  makes  her  start. 
It  says  :  "  How  did  you  enjoy  your  New  York  trip, 
Lilly?  Did  my  letter  have  any  weight  in  causing 
your  return  ?  " 

Turning  round  with  a  gasp  of  astonishment 
and  dismay,  she  sees  the  stalwart  figure  of  Fred 
Cassadene,  who  is  looking  upon  her  with  triumph 
ant  and  longing  eyes.  A  moment  after  there  is 
some  disappointment  in  his  glance  ;  for  curiously 
enough,  the  Miss  Travers  he  is  gazing  upon  seems 
to  have  deteriorated  since  he  saw  her  last,  and  ap 
pears  not  so  graceful  and  not  so  beautiful  as  the 
girl  who  had  given  him  back  her  troth,  scarce  a 
month  before,  in  St.  Augustine. 

He  chews  his  mustache  rather  disconcertedly,  as 
he  mutters  to  himself,  "  By  Jove  !  how  she  has 
changed  !  "  Then  masculine  vanity  comes  to  him 
and  he  .thinks  :  "  Joy  will  bring  back  beauty  to  her. 
I'll  make  her  happy." 

Miss  Travers  gives  a  startled  "  You  here  !  "  and 
then  forces  herself  into  the  commonplaces  of  social 
recognition.  A  moment  after  the  Doctor  whispers 
in  her  ear,  "  You  have  suffered  too  !  "  and  is  surprised 
and  shocked,  for  the  delicate  Miss  Travers  replies 
savagely  "  Rats  !  "  an  expression  she  has  learnt  from 
Jane  and  cultivated  for  masculine  use. 

On  this,  the  disconcerted  Frederick  drawing  back 
from  her,  she  goes  into  meditation  herself,  and  won- 


A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT.  I/I 

ders  :  "  What  cursed  ill-luck  has  sent  this  love-sick 
sop  here  to  make  my  task  more  difficult  ?  " 

Though  she  does  not  know  it ;  her  day's  delay  in 
Jacksonville,  her  additional  lingering  twenty-four 
hours  in  Citra, — have  brought  this  misadventure 
upon  her. 

Cassadene,  glancing  over  the  papers,  has  noted  in 
the  society  columns  that  Miss  Lillian  Travers,  one 
of  the  great  catches  of  New  York  and  the  reported 
fiancee  of  the  dashing  doctor  of  the  Ponce  de  Leon, 
is  now  in  Jacksonville,  accompanied  by  her  maid ; 
that  she  in  the  next  day  or  two  is  bound  for  Ocala 
with  the  object  of  making  the  celebrated  Ocklawaha 
trip,  for  which  she  has  already  engaged  a  stateroom. 
This  has  put  a  sudden  idea  into  the  Doctor's  mind. 
He  will  meet  the  boat  at  Silver  Spring  also,  and 
Miss  Travers,  being  on  board,  will  perforce  be  com 
pelled  to  accept  his  presence,  which  she  will  not  be 
able  to  dodge,  these  steamboats  being  very  small. 
In  the  twenty  hours'  run  through  romantic  cypress 
swamps  and  in  the  shadows  of  the  great  trees  and 
at  night  by  the  light  of  the  burning  pine  knots,  he 
will  again  press  his  suit,  and  having  been  made 
vain  by  his  fortune  among  the  fair  sex,  he  has  no 
doubt  he  will  once  more  be  successful. 

This  is  the  reason  that  Doctor  Fred,  chewing  his 
mustache  savagely,  is  now  gazing  upon  Miss  Trav 
ers,  whose  conduct  again  surprises  him. 

The  boat  has  already  plunged  into  the  cypress 
swamps.  The  crystal  waters  of  the  Silver  Run  have 
been  swallowed  by  the  dark  stream  of  the  larger 
river  which  cuts  them  off,  sharp  as  a  knife  blade. 
The  steamer  is  now  some  miles  down  the  Ocklawaha. 


172  A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT. 

Swinging  round  one  of  the  narrow  turns,  the  boat 
runs  within*  a  few  feet  of  a  cypress  tree,  one  of  the 
long  branches  of  which  is  covered  with  crawling, 
slimy,  venomous  snakes, — the  dreaded  water-moc 
casins  of  Florida. 

Several  ladies  on  the  upper  deck  shudder  and 
cringe  away  from  these  reptiles,  that  seem  almost 
near  enough  to  be  dangerous.  But  Miss  T ravers, 
unlike  her  sisters,  gazes  upon  the  slimy  things  with 
out  apparent  outward  discomfort,  and  seems  to 
enjoy  the  vigor  with  which  one  of  the  negro  deck 
hands  whacks  them  off  the  branch  with  a  pole  into 
the  water.  The  Lilly  Travers  of  a  month  ago  would 
have  shuddered  and  turned  from  this  sight,  though 
the  young  lady  who  is  now  gazing  upon  it  seems 
rather  interested  in  the  darkey's  assault  upon  the 
reptiles  that  open  their  cotton-mouths  at  him  and 
show  their  fangs  as  they  wriggle  about  in  vain 
endeavors  to  dodge  the  blows  from  his  far-reaching 
pole. 

The  Doctor's  vanity  again  deceives  him.  He 
thinks  :  "  Lilly  attempts  to  be  masculine  and  used 
that  frightful  exclamation  to  so  disgust  me  that  I 
will  not  renew  my  suit  ;  for  the  dear  girl  knows  that 
if  I  once  make  serious  love  to  her,  she  will  be  a 
goner."  Then  meditating  :  "  I  will  give  her  a  little 
rope.  I  will  leave  her  alone  for  an  hour  or  two. 
She  will  be  sighing  for  me  by  that  time," — he  de 
votes  his  attention  to  other  things  and  consoles  him 
self  with  a  cigar.  While  enjoying  his  Havana  he 
keeps  one  eye  upon  Miss  Travers,  who,  he  shortly 
discovers,  is  gazing  at  him  in  a  longing  way,  which 
elates  him  greatly. 


A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT.  1/3 

He  strolls  up  to  her  and  murmurs  in  his  sweetest 
voice  :  "  Ah,  Lilly  !  the  old  feeling  is  coming  into 
your  heart.  Your  eyes  have  again  a  longing  look  in 
them." 

"Yes — fora  cigar,"  mutters  Miss  Travers  snap 
pishly  ;  and  again  disconcerted  he  retreats  from  her. 

And  this  is  true  ;  for  it  is  a  hankering  after  his 
cigar,  not  him,  which  has  attracted  the  late  Miss 
Travers'  eager  eyes.  She  is  gradually  acquiring, 
among  her  mannish  accomplishments,  a  love  for  the 
weed,  and  thinks  a  cigar  would  be  uncommonly 
pleasant,  dare  she  but  use  one.  This  makes  her 
angry  and  she  says  to  herself :  "  To-night,  whether 
he  is  on  the  boat  or  not ! — To-morrow  I  will  have 
the  privileges  and  rights  of  a  man !  " 

Her  unfeminine  disregard,  as  Doctor  Fred  terms 
it,  of  his  feelings,  has  made  that  gentleman  sulky 
and  surly,  and,  greatly  to  her  relief,  he  does  not 
bother  Miss  Travers  for  some  hours. 

After  a  time,  at  a  little  landing  Lilly  sees  an 
orange  grove  and  stepping  on  shore  gathers  aided 
by  the  lady  of  the  plantation  a  branch  covered  with 
juicy  fruit  and  coming  on  board  again  goes  to  eat 
ing  and  tossing  the  peels  over  the  side  as  the  steam 
er  pushes  along  under  palmetto  and  cypress  that 
shadow  her  decks  and  make  leafy  arches  overhead. 

So  Lilly  putting  Fred  out  of  her  mind  gets  to 
looking  upon  and  enjoying  the  panorama  that  un 
folds  itself  as  the  boat  threads  its  way  through 
this  foliage-lined  stream,  making  turns  innumerable, 
and  sometimes  appearing  to  drive  straight  for  the 
cypress  belt  to  plunge  within  its  swamps,  then  sud 
denly  poled  off  by  the  sable  deck-hands  turning 


174  A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT. 

from  it  and  bending,  as  it  were,  back  on  its  course, 
after  the  style  of  the  letter  S. 

Next  she  notes  the  skill  of  the  negro  pilot  as  he 
swings  the  craft  on  its  course,  and  gets  to  looking 
for  alligators,  a  few  of  which  she  sees.  Most  of 
them  are  not  very  large,  though  extremely  wary,  for 
until  a  few  years  ago,  sportsmen  brought  their  rifles 
and  shooting-irons  on  deck  and  the  boat's  passage 
was  marked  by  a  fusillade  on  the  inhabitants  of  the 
swamp,  so  now  the  surviving  alligators  skulk  away 
from  the  path  of  the  steamer  and  into  the  swamps 
which  lie  for  miles  and  miles  on  either  side  of  the 
river,  a  mass  of  submerged  cypress,  dense  under 
growth  and  jungle,  impenetrable  to  man  and  still 
the  haunt  of  the  hunted  "  gator." 

Thus  the  day  wears  on,  Miss  Travers  making  but 
one  appearance  in  the  dining-room  of  the  little 
craft,  for  anxiety  has  taken  away  her  appetite.  And 
now  after  passing  two  giant  cypresses  that  graze 
the  boat  on  either  side,  early  night  falls  upon  the 
river,  for  the  great  trees  grow  so  thick  together  that 
the  declining  sun  cannot  penetrate  their  leafy  screen. 

After  a  little  the  noises  of  the  swamp  begin  to  be 
heard  in  the  stillness  of  the  night  ;  and  knots  of  fat 
pine  are  lighted  on  the  pilot-house  to  throw  a  glow 
over  the  river  by  which  the  boat  can  feel  its  way 
round  the  bends  and  sometimes  in  the  trees  torches 
blaze  in  the  hands  of  kindly  darkeys  to  help  the 
pilots  of  the  boat. 

At  the  little  landings  negroes  come  down  with 
blazing  pine  knots  to  light  the  deck-hands  as  they 
take  on  cargo. 

This  romantic  scene  impresses  Miss  Travers   and 


A  FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT.  1/5 

gives  her  a  gloomy  fit.  She  grows  timid  and  shud 
ders  at  the  thought  of  losing  her  name,  identity  and 
kindred  :  and  once  her  hand  goes  to  the  little  vial 
that  is  still  hanging  closely  held  in  its  buckskin  bag 
about  her  neck,  and  for  one  short  moment  she 
thinks:  "  Why  not  take  one  of  the  mystic  seeds  that 
have  brought  disquiet  to  me  and  return  to  the  life  I 
have  led — the  womanhood  I  have  left  behind  me-?" 

But  even  as  she  thinks  this,  the  voice  of  Doctor 
Freddie,  who  is  trying  to  make  himself  very  agreea 
ble  to  a  pretty,  young  lady  from  Cincinnati,  comes 
to  her  and  she  pauses  and  mutters  :  "  My  Heaven  ! 
— and  love  him  again  ?  "  Then  suddenly  dear  little 
Bessie's  face  rises  before  her  and  she  is  strong  to  do 
the  work  she  has  planned  for  herself  this  night. 

The  decks  of  the  boat  gradually  become  deserted, 
for  it  is  getting  late,  and  most  of  the  passengers 
have  squeezed  into  their  staterooms,  a  rather  diffi 
cult  job  for  fat  people.  A  few,  perhaps  unprovided 
with  sleeping  accommodations  which  are  limited 
upon  these  boats;  or  perchance,  anxious  to  still  look 
at  the  great  moss-laden  trees,  as  they  move  past 
them  or  hear  the  plantation  melodies  of  the  darkey 
crew — remain.  Often  as  the  boat  makes  sudden 
turns  the  cypress  branches  scrape  its  sides.  Now 
and  then  a  warning  cry  is  heard  as  some  great  limb 
sweeps  the  deck  giving  danger  as  well  as  romance 
to  this  night. 

Looking  at  her  watch,  Miss  Travers  asks  a  care 
less  question  of  a  negro  deck-hand  :  "  What  will  be 
our  next  landing  ?  " 

"  McBride  V  he  says  ;  "  den  yo'  come  to  Gray's 
— and  keep  yo'  eye  out,  miss,  for  de  way  we 


A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT. 

twists  'bout,  right  dar.  Den  we  come  up  to  Enoch 
&  Collins',  an'  den  Needle's  Eye,  an'  after  a  little 
while  we's  at  Orange  Spring  Lan'in'." 

As  his  words  come  to  Lilly's  ear,  her  heart  gives 
a  bound ;  for,  ever  since  she  has  made  some  appar 
ently  careless  inquiries  at  Citra,  Orange  Spring 
Landirvg  is  the  place  she  has  selected  where  the 
earth  will  know  Miss  Travers  no  more. 

Even  as  she  thinks  this,  Doctor  Fred  is  at  her 
side.  This  gentleman  has  apparently  got  over  his 
huffiness  of  the  morning.  Her  very  rebuffs  have 
made  him  more  eager  for  her  favor.  In  the  dark 
ness  he  cannot  see  the  change  that,  has  come  to 
this  woman  when  he  still  loves  in  his  own  desultory 
fashion,  perhaps  as  well  as  he  can  love  anybody — 
except  himself.  He  pictures  in  his  imagination  the 
girl  he  was  once  engaged  to,  and  Lilly  Travers  in 
the  darkness  of  this  night  is  as  femininely  beautiful 
as  the  Lilly  Travers  of  a  month  ago.  He  com 
mences  to  plead  with  her.  He  tells  her  how  he 
loves  her,  and,  receiving  no  answer,  his  vanity  whis 
pers  to  him,  "You  will  succeed  this  time!" 

"Dear  Lilly,"  he  continues,  "you  love  me  still. 
You  have  stayed  on  deck  so  as  to  hear  from  me  once 
more  the  tones  you  used  to  love — the  words  you 
used  to  drink  in  from  my  lips."  Then  the  two 
being  alone  and  in  the  shadow,  Doctor  Fred  fol 
lows  a  maxim  he  has  laid  down  for  himself:  "  Strike 
while  the  iron  is  hot."  He  suddenly  gives  the  puta 
tive  Miss  Travers  a  tender  yet  enthusiastic  embrace, 
and  whispering  "  I  love  you,"  would  again  feast 
upon  the  lips  whose  sweetness  he  remembers. 

But  this  young  delicate  lady,  to  his  surprise,  tears 


A  FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT.  1 77 

herself  from  him  suddenly,  with  a  force  that  aston 
ishes  the  stalwart  Frederick,  and  whispers  in  tones  of 
deadly  rage,  "  Hang  you,  sir,  if  you  dare  to  touch  me 
again,  I'll  knock  you  overboard  to  the  alligators  !  " 

Then  a  sudden  change  seems  to  come  over  the 
girl,  and  she  says  to  her  astonished,  dismayed  and 
disgusted  suitor  :  "  Forgive  me. — Good-night,  Doc 
tor  Freddie.  We  shall  be  better  friends  when  we 
meet  next/' 

This  idea  seems  to  amuse  her,  for  she  passes 
from  his  side  and  goes  off  to  her  stateroom,  laugh 
ing  an  uneasy,  mocking  laugh,  and  this  is  the  last 
that  Doctor  Frederick  Cassadene  ever  hears  from 
the  lips  of  Lilly  Travers. 

Half  an  hour  afterward,  the  boat  pulls  up  at 
Orange  Creek  Landing.  There  is  quite  a  lot  of 
freight  to  put  aboard,  the  deck  hands  are  busy,  the 
captain  and  pilot  occupied,  and  Fred  Cassadene 
is  carelessly  smoking  a  cigar  near  the  gang-plank, 
looking  at  the  labors  of  the  night  and  ruminating 
over  his  ill-success  with  the  New  York  heiress, — 
when,  a  young  man  in  gray  travelling  suit,  with  a 
fishing-rod  in  his  hand  and  attended  by  a  darkey 
servant  carrying  a  gun  case  and  small  satchel,  passes 
quickly  over  the  gang-plank.  The  pine  knot  in  the 
hand  of  a  negro  standing  on  the  landing  for  a  mo 
ment  lights  up  the  face  of  the  young  man,  though 
partially  concealed  by  a  slouched  hat,  and  Cassadene 
gives  a  momentary  start  ;  then  mutters  :  "  It's  funny 
I  can't  get  Lilly  Travers'  eyes  out  of  my  head. 
Everyone  I  look  at  seems  to  have  her  optics ! " 
Then,  he  queries  wonderingly  :  "  That  young  sports 
man  must  have  kept  himself  pretty  well  boxed  up 

12 


1/8  A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT. 

in  his  stateroom  this  trip ;  funny  I  haven't  seen 
him,  before." 

But  the  whistle  of  the  boat  sounds,  the  great 
stern  wheel  revolves  and  the  Okahumpka  is  on  her 
way  again,  while  Lawrence  Talbot  and  his  valet, 
Jack  Robbins,  are  tramping  along  the  Orange  Creek 
road  towards  Orange  Springs  ;  but  they  do  not  stop 
at  that  little  place,  turning  off  instead  to  the  north 
and  making  along  the  road  that  leads  to  the  railway, 
some  ten  miles  distant  in  that  direction;  for  Mr. 
Talbot  seems  to  have  a  desperate  desire  not  to  be 
seen  in  the  neighborhood  of  the  Ocklawaha  River. 
And  so  they  make  the  longest  march  young  Mr. 
Talbot  has  ever  made,  for  he  is  a  delicate  young 
gentleman  as  yet  and  has  not  met  with  the  fatigues 
incident  to  manhood,  nor  many  of  its  responsibili 
ties  which  are  shortly  to  come  upon  him  ;  and  his 
man-servant,  who  wears  his  clothes  in  an  awkward, 
ungainly,  unaccustomed  way,  during  one  of  the  many 
stops — for  they  make  many — says  with  a  guffaw  : 
" Golly,  Mr.  Lawrence!  wouldn't  we  be  skeert  ef  we 
was  gals  ?  " 

"  Yes,"  remarks  Talbot,  lighting  a  cigar  to  soothe 
the  weariness  of  the  way ;  "  a  month  ago,  Jack,  we 
would  have  died  of  fright,  out  here  alone,  with  the 
owls  hooting  like  that !  "  Then  he  says  suddenly, 
"  What  did  you  do  with  our  clothes  ?" 

"  Tossed  'em  all  overboard  !  " 

"  That's  the  proper  place  for  'em  !  "  remarks  the 
gentleman  cheerily.  "  How  any  human  being  can 
wear  the  disgusting  unhealthy  corsets  and  street- 
sweeping  gowns  women  will  insist  upon  flaunting 
about  in  is  more  than  I  can  see  !  But  we  have  a 


A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT.  179 

pretty  good  step  to  go  before  we  reach  Clark's 
Mill, — so  trot  along,  my  man  !  " 

Then  the  two  trudge  sturdily  on,  and  in  the 
early  morning  find  themselves  in  pine  woods,  here 
and  there  made  bright  by  little  lakes;  but  they 
still  press  on,  until,  foot-sore  and  weary,  this  young 
gentleman  and  his  man-servant  reach  the  railroad, 
where  they  take  the  first  train  for  Southern  Florida, 
arriving  at  Orlando.  Here  Mr.  Lawrence  Talbot 
finds  his  trunks  ahead  of  him,  and  proceeds  to  make 
himself  comfortable  and  apparently  having  plenty 
of  money — hires  a  guide  and  explores  the  Kissim- 
mee  region  in  pursuit  of  game,  without  much  luck, 
however  ;  the  "  Cracker  "  who  attends  him  remark 
ing  on  their  return,  one  day  in  a  bar-room  in  Kissim- 
mee,  that  young  Mr.  Talbot  is  the  worst  "  shooter  " 
for  a  human  being  he  ever."  seed  "  ;  that  he  has 
only  succeeded,  so  far,  in  shooting  the  air. 

All  this  time,  the  neophyte  is  hurriedly  cultivating 
a  handsome  mustache  and  a  well  tanned  skin,  and 
learning  to  become  a  shot  and  to  handle  his  mascu 
line  muscles  for  all  they  are  worth  and  is  thorough 
ly  indifferent  apparently  to  what  is  going  on  in  the 
country  to  the  north  of  him  ;  though  he  sometimes 
wonders  what  the  world  says  at  Lilly  Travers'  being 
out  of  it. 

Curiously  enough  Miss  Travers  has  not  been 
missed  as  yet.  The  Okahumpka  arrives  at  Palatka 
before  sunrise,  Doctor  Fred  bolts  off  to  sleep  and 
the  Putnam  House  in  a  huff  and  a  hurry,  and  when 
daylight  comes  upon  the  town  the  passengers  have 
all  left  the  steamboat,  Miss  Travers  and  her  maid 
being  supposed  to  be  among  them. 


l8o  A  FLORIDA  ENCHANTMENT. 

And  though  Bessie's  face  has  begun  to  be  anxious 
among  St.  Augustine  orange  groves  and  she  some 
times  mutters,  "  Why  don't  she  write  ?"  and  Miss  Con 
nie  ofttimes  says,  "  Lilly  must  have  gone  straight  to 
Havana,  that's  the  fad  trip  this  year, — she'll  be  back 
soon,"  very  little  has  been  thought  of  Miss  Travers' 
disappearance. — What's  one  little  girl  in  this  great 
world  of  ours — even  if  she  be  a  beauty  and  an 
heiress — save  to  those  who  love  her  ? 


BOOK    III. 

THE    WONDERFUL    ADVENTURES    OF 
MR.     LAWRENCE     TALBOT. 


CHAPTER    XIV. 

* 
WILD    OATS. 

SHORTLY  after  this — the  Palatka  train  brings  in 
one  evening  to  St.  Augustine  a  dark-skinned,  sun 
burnt  young  man  who  says  to  his  servant,  "  Jack,  tell 
the  hackman  the  Cordova.  Wilson  always  makes 
everybody  comfortable  !  " 

In  this  gorgeous  hostelry,  Mr.  Lawrence  Talbot 
soon  finds  himself  very  cosily  housed,  occupying  two 
of  the  small  but  pretty  tower  rooms  that  look  out 
on  the  Alameda,  diagonally  opposite  the  Ponce  de 
Leon.  He  is  fortunate  in  securing  these  apart 
ments,  but  the  season  is  drawing  towards  its  close 
and  already  travellers  are  commencing  to  turn  their 
faces  in  search  of  a  new  spring  that  will  soon  be 
found  in  Virginia  and  North  Carolina  watering- 
places. 

It  is  altogether  too  late  by  the  time  Mr.  Talbot 
receives  his  trunks,  for  him  to  achieve  a  toilet  and 


1 82  A  FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT. 

make  any  visits  this  evening,  though  he  is  desper 
ately  anxious  to  see  a  pair  of  blue  eyes  that  exist 
some  three  miles  out  of  town  in  the  orange  groves 
on  the  St.  Sebastian.  So  he  spends  his  evening 
meditating  upon  his  future  course,  and  drawing 
his  inspirations  from  the  strains  of  the  band  in  the 
"  sun  parlor  "  and  the  whiffs  of  a  cigar,  which  he  has 
learned  by  this  time  to  smoke  very  nicely. 

He  apparently  has  no  friends  in  the  hotel,  though 
once  or  twice  he  looks  at  people  as  if  he  expected 
recognition  but  does  not  get  it.  His  appearance  and 
general  style  however  attract  the  gaze  of  several 
beauties  who  wonder  who  that  natty  young  fellow 
is  and  think  he  would  probably  be  nice  to  know  and 
perchance  to  flirt  with. 

Noting  this  handsome,  dark-eyed,  slight-figured 
young  gentleman's  lack  of  companions  and  acquaint 
ances,  the  host  of  the  Cordova  with  his  characteristic 
bonhomie  and  put-everybody-at-home  manner  steps 
up  to  his  lonely  guest  and  enters  into  conversation 
with  him,  striving  to  make  him  forget  his  lack  of 
acquaintances  by  genial  anecdotes  of  Florida  and  St. 
Augustine,  with  which,  curiously  enough,  his  hearer 
seems  to  be  extraordinarily  well  acquainted  for  a 
person  who  has  never  visited  the  place  before. 

In  the  course  of  conversation,  young  Talbot, 
noticing  ladies  passing  out  in  gala  array,  asks  inci 
dentally  where  they  are  going. 

"To  the  hop  at  the  Ponce  de  Leon,"  says  Mr. 
Wilscn.  Then  he  remarks  suddenly:  ''Wouldn't 
you  like  to  see  it  ?  I  think  I  can  get  you  a  ticket  if 
you  would." 

"Would  I  like  to  see  it?"   echoes  the  gentleman 


A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT.  183 

addressed.  Then  he  answers  himself  eagerly,  "  Im 
mensely  !  "  a  longing  light  coming  into  his  eyes 
and  his  countenance  growing  vivacious,  for  sudden 
thought  suggests — "  Perhaps  Bessie  will  be  there," 
— as  he  bounds  up-stairs  to  encounter  that  joy  of 
budding  manhood,  his  first  dress  suit. 

Calling  in  his  servant,  he  says  :  "  Jack,  get  out  my 
swallow-tail  ;  I  am  going  to  christen  it  to-night," 
and  soon  finds  himself  arrayed  in  a  well-fitting 
evening  costume  that  suits  his  lithe,  though  slight, 
figure  perfectly,  having  come  from  the  hands  of  a 
first-rate  New  York  tailor.  Looking  at  the  glass, 
Mr.  Lawrence  Talbot  remarks  :  "  I  think  this  will  do 
the  girls  this  evening;  "  and  then  mutters  in  sudden 
joy  :  "  My  first  hop  as  a  full-fledged  man  !  " 

A  moment  after  he  steps  down-stairs,  to  find  his 
invitation  waiting  for  him  at  the  office.  Then 
shielded  from  the  evening  mist  by  a  light  overcoat 
he  crosses  the  Alameda,  and  entering  the  gardened 
court-yard  of  the  Ponce  de  Leon  and  passing  its 
sulphur-scented  fountain,  he  strolls  into  that  great 
hostelry  to  see  Bessie  and  not  be  over-pleased  with 
what  his  sweetheart  is  doing. 

Having  put  away  his  hat  and  overcoat,  he  enters 
the  dining-room,  where  the  dance  is  going  on,  and 
joins  the  spectators. 

It  is  the  usual  watering-place  hop,  that  Lawrence 
gazes  on — the  dancing  ladies  many,  the  dancing 
men  few. 

As  Lawrence's  eyes  rove  over  the  assemblage 
seeking  his  little  sweetheart's  pretty  figure,  his  in 
quisitorial  glances  bring  odd  feelings  with  them. 
Mr.  Talbot  sees  acquaintances  and  intimate  friends 


1 84  A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT. 

of  Lilly  Travers,  and  would  like  to  recognize  and 
speak  to  them,  but  dare  not.  Then  he  notices 
some  gentlemen  who  once  bowed  down  at  the 
shrine  of  the  late  New  York  heiress's  beauty,  and 
mutters  "  Wouldn't  they  jump,  if  they  but  knew!  " 
Incidentally,  among  these  he  sees  the  stalwart  form 
of  Doctor  Fred,  who  is  just  entering  the  ball-room 
with  the  radiant  Mrs.  Stella  Lovejoy  on  his  arm. 
This  lady  appears  even  more  beautiful  than  before 
to  Mr.  Talbot,  who  divorced  from  the  society  of 
women  for  the  last  two  or  three  weeks,  now  hun 
gers  for  it  with  all  a  boy's  enthusiasm. 

But  even  as  he  drinks  in  the  widow's  beauty,  a 
voice  beside  him  makes  him  start  and  blush  with 
joy.  It  is  from  blue-eyed  Miss  Bessie,  and  says  to 
the  gentleman  upon  whose  arm  she  is  leaning : 
"  Mr.  Wilkes,  your  description  of  your  orange 
grove  on  Indian  River  gives  me  a  yearning  for 
oranges  ! 

"  Ah,  thank  you,"  remarks  that  gentleman  excit 
edly.  "  Then,"  he  says  with  insinuation,  "  you  must 
also  like  orange  blossoms?" 

"  If  the  right  man  came  with  them  !"  answers  the 
young  lady,  and  the  blue  eyes  droop  coquettishly. 

Lawrence  Talbot  looks  at  this  little  scene,  and 
rage  comes  into  his  heart  ;  he  thinks  savagely : 
"  How  dares  Bessie  talk  of  orange  blossoms  to 
any  man  but  me  ? — What  a  little  flirt  she  is — for 
of  course  she  don't  care  a  copper  for  that  idiotic 
Wilkes." 

With  this  fires  of  masculine  jealousy  come  into 
his  brain  and  make  his  eyes  glare  upon  the  offend 
ing  orange  grower.  Mr.  Wilkes  however  is  so 


A  FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT.  1 8$ 

wrapped  up  in  pretty  Miss  Horton  that  he  does 
not  notice  these  glances  from  the  dark-eyed  slen 
der  gentleman  standing  close  to  him. 

Then  of  a  sudden,  Lawrence  Talbot,  forgetting 
the  present,  would  treat  Bessie  Horton  as  Lilly 
Travers  did  in  the  past,  and  is  about  to  em 
brace  Miss  Bessie  impulsively  and  kiss  her,  and  call 
her  his  little  darling  and  bring  confusion  upon  the 
young  lady  and  attack  and  horsewhipping  upon 
himself  from  her  fiery  father — but  recollection 
stays  him  just  in  time ;  he  mutters  to  himself : 
"  Great  Heaven !  What  an  insult  she  would 
think  it !  I  dare  not  even  speak  to  her.  I  must 
run  back  to  the  hotel  and  get  my  letter  of  intro 
duction.  A  ball-room  isn't  exactly  the  place  to 
preseet  it,  but  anything  rather  than  bite  my  nails 
with  rage  and  permit  that  drawling  idiot  to  mo 
nopolize  her  this  evening." 

But  as  he  turns  on  his  errand,  he  fortunately  sees 
the  only  man  he  knows  in  all  this  world  led  up  by 
her  father  and  very  kindly  recognized  by  Miss 
Bessie.  This  is  a  gentleman  who  has  been  ex 
amining  some  phosphate  lands  belonging  to  Major 
Horton  in  Southern  Florida.  Lawrence  and  he 
have  been  thrown  together  in  Kissimmee.  A  week 
in  that  not  over  exciting  place,  has  set  them  to 
playing  billiards  and  over  the  green-cloth  they  have 
become  quite  friendly  and  chummish.  The  mo 
ment  this  gentleman  has  left  Miss  Horton,  Talbot 
speaks  to  him,  and,  trying  to  keep  excitement  out 
of  his  voice,  though  it  will  tremble  a  little,  he 
remarks  :  "  That  is  quite  a  pretty  young  lady  you 
were  speaking  to,  Mr.  Malcolm.  What  is  her  name?" 


1 86  A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT. 

"Pretty?  Well,  rather,"  says  Malcolm,  who  is  a 
man  past  middle  age.  "  She  is  Miss  Bessie  Horton, 
one  of  the  belles  of  this  place.  Would  you  like  to 
be  presented  to  her  ?  Dancing  men  are .  scarce 
about  here,  and  you  look  as  though  you  might 
make  yourself  useful,  Talbot !  " 

"  Miss  Horton  ?  "  remarks  Lawrence,  as  if  trying 
to  recollect  something.  Then  he  says  suddenly  : 
"  Oh  yes — Miss  Bessie  Horton ;  I  remember.  I 
believe  I  have  a  letter  of  introduction  to  her  in  my 
trunk  at  the  hotel.  I  should  be  delighted  if  your 
kindness  would  permit  me  to  anticipate  it  this  even 
ing." 

"  All  right,  my  boy;  I'll  speak  to  her,"  answers 
Malcolm,  who  is  rather  proud  of  his  acquaintance 
with  this  eligible  young  gentleman,  whose  clothes 
and  general  get-up  are  unmistakably  those  of  a 
New  York  swell. 

A  moment  after,  the  debutant  in  manhood  sees 
him  speaking  to  Miss  Bessie  and  her  blue  eyes  get 
ting  very  big  with  sudden  interest,  as  she  hears  that 
Mr.  Lawrence  Talbot  would  like  an  introduction  ; 
then  his' head  buzzes;  he  is  standing  looking  into 
his  sweetheart's  eyes  and  listening  to  her  soft  South 
ern  voice  and  thinking  her  even  sweeter,  prettier 
and  more  piquantly  charming  than  the  dear  little 
Bessie  of  old. 

"  Mr.  Lawrence  Talbot  ?  "  she  remarks,  looking 
him  over.  Then  she  says  impulsively,  "  Has  Lilly 
Travers  ever  spoken  to  you  of  me  ?  " 

"  Very  often,"  replies  the  young  gentleman  eager 
ly.  "  I  have  a  letter  of  introduction  to  you  from 
her.  I  intend  to  present  it  to-morrow  !  " 


A  FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT.  187 

"You  mean  you  intended?"  corrects  Miss  Bessie. 

"  No,  I  still  intend. — Please  don't  cut  me  out  of  a 
visit  to-morrow  !  " 

She  doesn't  answer  this  ;  some  curious  idea  seems 
to -have  come  into  the  girl's  head,  her  eyes  look  ex 
cited  and  astonished.  She  says :  "  How  like  your 
cousin  !  Your  eyes  have  the  same  flashes  ;  your 
voice — if  I  may  use  a  slangy  expression,  the  same 
twist  in  it."  Then  she  goes  on  suddenly,  a  shade  of 
anxiety  in  her  tone,  "  When  did  you  get  your  letter 
of  introduction  from  Lilly?" 

"  In  New  York,  four  weeks  ago." 

"  And  no  letter  from  her  for  a  month  !  "  mutters 
Bessie  with  a  pained  and  anxious  voice.  "  Then 
she  puts  this  startling  question,  "  Do  you  know 
where  Lilly  is  now?" 

"  I — I — I  believe  she  is  somewhere  about  here," 
is  Mr.  Talbot's  rather  confused  though  truthful 

o 

answer  to  this  question.  "  I  know  where  she  would 
like  to  be,"  he  goes  on  with  a  meaning  smile. 

"  Where?" 

"  Where  I  am  now.  From  what  she  said  to  me, 
I  know  she  loved — I  mean  loves  you  very  much." 

"  So,  you  have  often  discussed  me,"  murmurs 
Bessie  looking  interested. 

"  Very  often,  where  could  we  find  a  pleasanter 
subject  ?  " — says  Lawrence  gallantly,  his  eyes  em 
phasizing  this  passage,  and  a  quizzical  look  coming 
over  his  mobile  features  as  he  continues,  "  I  pre 
sume,  in  return,  Miss  Travers  has  often  spoken  to 
you  of  me,  eh  ?  " 

But  Miss  Bessie  turns  away  her  head,  without 
answer  though  a  bright  blush  on  the  cheek  that 


188  A  FLORIDA  ENCHANTMENT. 

remains  in  view  makes  Lawrence  think  it  hardly  fair 
to  continue  in  this  strain,  and  he  whispers,  "  Did 
you  say  you  would  like  to  dance  ?  " 

"  I  didn't  say  so,"  laughs  Bess,  "  though  I  would, 
very  much/' 

So  the  two  move  together  in  very  much  the  same 
fashion  that  Lilly  Travers  a  few  weeks  before  danced 
with  Bessie  Horton. — so  much  so  that  in  a  pause 
of  the  waltz,  Bess  remarks,  looking  in  her  compan 
ion's  face  with  some  admiration  and  perhaps  a  little 
wonder  :  "  Your  step  is  just  the  same  as  Lilly's.  If 
I  did  not  know  you  were  her  cousin,  I  might  think 
you  were  her  big  brother." 

"  The  brother  you  said  you  would  like  to  marry 
one  night?"  is  on  the  tip  of  Lawrence's  tongue; 
but  prudence  checks  him ;  though  these  remarks 
of  Miss  Horton  give  him  a  confidence  with  this 
young  lady  that  later  on  this  evening  brings  him  to 
grief. 

At  present  the  two  chat  very  gayly  and  happily 
together,  Miss  Bessie  playfully  remarking  that  Lilly 
has  told  her  that  her  cousin  shall  make  up  for  her 
absence,  and  he  must  keep  Miss  Travers'  word 
good.  Then  she  inquires  :  "  How  long  will  you 
stay  in  St.  Augustine  ?  " 

"  So  long  as  it  is  pleasant  for  me,"  returns  the 
young  gentleman  ;  then  continues  pointedly :  "You 
see,  the  matter  is  in  your  own  hands." 

At  which  the  young  lady,  thinking  this  gentleman 
rather  bold  on  short  acquaintance,  replies  :  "Then  I 
will  begin  my  office  and  introduce  you  to  my 
friends." 

Which    she    does,   presenting  him   to  Mrs.  Stella 


A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT.  189 

Lovejoy,  who  looks  with  kindly  eyes  upon  Mr. 
Talbot,  and  thinks  he  might  make  a  new  recruit 
in  her  ranks  of  adorers  and  a  pleasant  foil  to  Doc 
tor  Fred,  and  a  card  with  which  to  draw  out  that 
gentleman's  trumps  in  the  game  in  which  the  widow 
and  he  are  playing.  An  idea  which  shortly  after 
wards  produces  some  curious  complications  in  Mr. 
Lawrence  Talbot's  life. 

Miss  Bessie  in  her  warm-hearted,  impulsive,  South 
ern  way  does  the  introduction  business  by  the 
wholesale,  and  Mr.  Talbot  soon  finds  himself  once 
more  acquainted  with  many  of  Miss  Travers'  old 
friends,  having  great  difficulty  in  preventing  himself 
from  treating  the  ladies  with  the  familiarity  that 
Lilly  was  wont  to  do. 

These  peculiar  actions  of-  her  escort  coming  under 
Miss  Bessie's  sharp  eyes,  she  gives  a  little  laugh  and 
whispers :  "  I  am  afraid  you  are  a  very  bold  young 
gentleman." 

"  Indeed?     Why?" 

"  Oh,  because — because  you  look  so  familiarly 
affectionate  at  many  of  the  ladies  on  introduction." 

A  moment  after  she  says  :  "  You  must  know  my 
father,"  and  presents  him  to  the  old  major,  who, 
learning  that  the  young  man  has  been  in  Southern 
Florida,  grows  effusive  about  his  phosphate  proper 
ties  in  that  region,  telling  him  that  he  is  forming  a 
company  that  will  deliver  an  "  A,  No.  I,"  eighty  per 
cent,  fertilizer  right  on  the  Liverpool  docks,  for  five 
dollars  a  ton,  and  remarks  :  "  What  do  you  think  of 
that  ?  " 

To  which  Lawrence,  in  bad  judgment,  replies:  "  I 
can't  exactly  tell — I  am  not  a  business  man." 


1 90  A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT. 

"  Ha — ah  !  Then  we'll  teach  you  !  America  is  a 
business  country.  Perhaps  you  will  make  your  for 
tune  here  !  "  remarks  the  major  patronizingly. 

But  Lawrence  does  not  care  for  his  future  father- 
in-law  to  imagine  that  his  future  son-in-law's  fortune 
is  yet  to  be  made.  He  says  airily  :  "  Oh,  my  an 
cestors  did  that  for  me  long  ago  !  " 

And  so  turning  to  Mrs.  Lovejoy's  attractive  side 
he  leaves  the  future  father-in-law  impressed  by  the 
to-be  son-in-law's  wealth.  For  the  major  remarks 
to  Miss  Bessie  the  first  chance  he  gets  in  a  playful 
father's  aside :  "  Has  she  caught  a  young  and  rich 
beau,  papa's  wise  little  girl?"  playfully  pinching 
Miss  Bessie's  pretty  ear. 

At  which  the  girl  says  :  "  Pshaw  !  I  have  only 
known  Mr.  Talbot  ten  minutes.  What  makes  you 
say  such  horrid  things  ?  Do  you  like  to  make  me 
blush?" 

But  this  conversation  is  interrupted  by  the  atten 
tive  Mr.  Wilkes,  who  again  makes  his  appearance 
with  some  more  remarks  about  oranges  and  orange 
blossoms  and  takes  the  young  lady  to  dance. 

Looking  upon  this,  as  he  is  conversing  with  the 
radiant  Stella,  jealousy  again  gets  into  Mr.  Talbot's 
heart,  and  a  moment  after,  the  opportunity  coming 
to  him,  he  takes  Miss  Bessie  upon  his  arm  and  pro 
poses  a  little  promenade  in  the  big  corridors  of  the 
hotel.  The  girl  assents  so  readily  to  his  proposition 
that  this  rash  young  gentleman  becoming  very  bold, 
thinks  to  take  up  his  running  where  Miss  Lilly 
Travers  left  off — a  mistake  which  brings  its  own 
punishment  with  it. 

After  a  few  commonplaces,  he  twists  the  subject 


A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT.  191 

round  to  the  aggravating  Wilkes,  remarking  in  the 
assurance  of  his  new-born  manhood  :  "  You  don't 
get  very  much  advice,  Miss  Bessie,  I  should  imag 
ine  ?  " 

"  No  ? "  mutters  the  girl.  Then  she  suddenly 
says,  her  eyes  gleaming  a  little  :  "  Do  you  think  I 
need  it?" — and  growing  red  at  the  implied  criticism, 
remarks :  "  You  have  had  such  a  long  time  to  study 
me  ! " — this  last  with  an  air  of  sarcasm. 

"  Personally,"  says  Mr.  Lawrence  airily,  "  I  have 
not  had  much  time,  but  I  have  received  a  good 
deal  of  information  about  you  from  Miss  Lilly 
Travers." 

"  Ah  !  Perhaps  you  would  like  to  stand  in  Lilly's 
shoes,"  returns  Bessie,  haughtily. 

"  Wouldn't  I  !  "  This  is  said  with  so  much  mean 
ing  that  Miss  Horton  looks  at  her  escort  a  moment 
in  dismay,  and  then  remarks,  with  additional  color 
in  her  cheeks:  "  And  what  advice  do  you  suppose 
Miss  Travers  would  give  me  ?  " 

Just  here  Lawrence  Talbot  makes  one  of  the  mis 
takes  of  his  young  life.  He  says:  "  Miss  Travers 
I  imagine  would  suggest  that  a  young  lady  of  your 
beauty  and  fascinations  should  be  able  to  find  a 
more  brilliant  escort  than  a  man  who  talks  about 
nothing  but  oranges  and  orange  blossoms " — the 
orange  blossoms  with  rather  a  savage  accent. 

"  Oh  !  "  cries  Bessie,  opening  her  eyes  in  indigna 
tion  ;  "  you  mean  Mr.  Wilkes." 

"  Miss  Travers  would  mean  Mr.  Wilkes." 

"  Then  Miss  Travers  had  better  speak  for  her 
self,"  cries  Bess,  who  has  been  gradually  working 
herself  up  into  a  Southern  passion.  "  Let  me  give 


IQ2  A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT. 

you  a  little  information  also,  Mr.  Talbot :  Do  you 
know  what  were  the  last  words  I  ever  uttered  to 
Miss  Travers  ?  " 

"  You — you  needn't  tell  me/'  mutters  Lawrence, 
getting  very  red  in  the  face  and  so  much  confused — 
that  Miss  Bessie  suddenly  cries,  "  She  has  told  you 
already — Oh  my!  How  mean  of  her!"  and  her 
lips  quiver  with  mortification.  Next  she  ejaculates 
— "  Ah  !  here's  Mr.  Wilkes  himself.  I  believe  he  has 
the  next  dance."  And  turning  from  the  abashed 
young  gentleman  before  her,  her  indignant  but 
troubled  eyes  become  soft  and  alluring  as  she  fixes 
them  upon  -  the  orange-grower,  and  taking  that  gen 
tleman's  arm,  trips  away  in  hot  indignation. 

Then  savage,  wild,  torturing  masculine  jealousy  in 
its  full-grown  form  enters  Mr.  Lawrence  Talbot's 
soul,  and  with  a  muttered  anathema  on  Wilkes  and 
women,  he  strides  off  among  several  male  acquaint 
ances  he  has  just  made,  to  console  himself  with 
champagne,  thinking,  "  Why  not — I  might  as  well 
sow  my  wild  oats  now  as  never !  " 

A  glass  or  two  of  wine,  and  he  chances  to  en 
counter  Mrs.  Stella  Lovejoy.  Made  enthusiastic 
by  the  grape  he  opens  a  violent  attack  upon  that 
lady's  heart,  to  the  rage  of  Doctor  Frederick,  who 
looks  very  glumly  on  at  this  young  gentleman's  per 
formance  ;  till  after  a  while  tiring  of  this,  Lawrence 
goes  gloomily  home  to  the  Cordova  and  tumbles 
into  bed. 

But  now  he  is  no  poor  wounded  Lilly  Travers  to 
toss  and  writhe  and  utter  tearful  moans  of  wounded 
love,  and  in  the  pride  of  new-born  manhood  he  mut 
ters  :  "  Bess  is  an  awful  little  flirt,  but  I'll  fix  her 


A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT.  193 

good.     I'll    play  the  Lovejoy  widow  against  her; — 
Watch  me  !  "  and  so  goes  to  sleep. 

He  awakes  next  morning,  notwithstanding  his 
boast,  in  rather  a  doleful  and  disgruntled  state  of 
mind,  which  does  not  cause  him  to  respond  very 
effusively  to  the  merry  guffaws  of  his  man  Jack  as 
he  lays  out  his  clothes  for  the  morning  and  remarks 
in  the  happy-go-lucky  style  of  his  race :  "  Golly  ! 
Massa  Lawrence ;  won't  we  lay  out  de  whole 
worl' ! " 

CHAPTER    XV. 

FLOATING   GARMENTS    FROM    THE   OCKLAWAHA. 

A  MOMENT  after,  while  dressing,  chancing  to  look 
through  the  casements  of  the  Moorish  windows  of 
his  room  in  the  Cordova,  he  sees  Stella  Lovejoy 
taking  her  morning  drive,  for  Mr.  Talbot's  slumbers 
have  been  long  and  the  day  is  somewhat  advanced. 
The  sight  of  this  beautiful  woman  brings  with  it 
activity.  He  dresses,  whistling  vivaciously,  and 
going  down  to  the  dining-room,  enjoys  his  breakfast 
hurriedly.  For  the  idea  of  last  night  has  returned 
to  him,  and  he  thinks  he  will  make  Miss  Bess  very 
jealous,  forgetting,  with  a  vanity  peculiar  to  adoles 
cence,  that  he  must  first  make  Miss  Horton  love 
him,  before  he  can  make  her  jealous,  and  up  to  the 
present  time  that  young  lady  has  not  shown  any  de 
cided  preference  for  him,  though  he  has  for  her. 

In  pursuance  of  his  plan,  he  keeps  a  bright  eye 
out  for  the  widow's  equipage,  and  fortunately  catch 
ing  sight  of  it  in  ample  time,  steps  briskly  over  to 
the  Ponce  de  Leon  and  is  ready  to  most  politely  doff 
13 


194  A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT. 

his  hat  and  offer  his  arm,  as  the  beauty  descends  from 
her  victoria.  Escorting  her  into  the  gardens,  he* 
speedily  has  a  couple  of  seats  (for  he  has  been  lib 
eral,  last  night,  with  the  servants  of  the  Ponce  de 
Leon,  and  they  remember  him),  and  the  two  sitting 
down  amid  flowers  and  sunshine  listen  to  the  band 
playing  in  the  loggia.  In  their  conversation,  Mrs. 
Lovejoy  soon  discovers  that  this  young  gentleman 
is  a  distant  cousin  of  Miss  Travers.  This  lady,  she 
at  present  considers  her  rival  with  the  medical 
Adonis,  and  becomes  anxious  for  Mr.  Lawrence's 
intimacy,  thinking  she  may  obtain  from  him  infor 
mation  of  the  Doctor's  position  with  that  New  York 
belle,  that  may  be  of  use  to  her. 

A  few  minutes  after  remarking  with  an  entranc 
ing  smile  :  "  The  band  has  stopped  work  !  "  She 
suggests,  "  Why  not  come  up  to  my  parlor,  Mr. 
Talbot  ?  It  is  cooler  there,  and  in  a  few  minutes  it 
will  be  time  for  lunch,  and  you  can  be  my  guest." 

So  in  a  very  few  moments  Lawrence  finds  him 
self  seated  with  the  beautiful  Stella  on  the  very 
balcony  which  Miss  Travers  saw  occupied  by  Doctor 
Cassadene  and  this  dainty  charmer  when  the  first 
pangs  of  wounded  love  came  to  Lilly's  heart  to 
make  her  on  that  eventful  night  turn  away  from 
weak  womanhood  to  obtain,  perchance,  weaker  man 
hood. 

On  account  of  Mr.  Talbot,  Mrs.  Lovejoy  and  Doc 
tor  Fred  have  had  a  lovers'  quarrel  the  evening 
before,  and  as  Lawrence  and  she  say  sweet  nothings 
to  each  other  on  the  balcony,  this  gentleman's  card 
being  brought  up  to  her,  the  widow  returns  "Not  at 
home !  " 


A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT.  195 

This  makes  Mr.  Talbot  very  proud  and  conceited, 
he  thinking  that  his  charms  have  literally  floored 
the  handsome  doctor  in  the  very  first  round.  He 
strokes  his  not  entirely  completed  mustache  con 
templatively  and  meditates :  "  I  believe  I  could 
capture  Stella  myself — for  keeps,  if  I  but  wanted 
her ;"  and  thoughtlessly  proceeds  to  put  some  nails 
in  Doctor  Freddie's  amorous  coffin  in  the  easy  way 
that  one  gentleman  rival  does  to  another. 

"  I  believe  you  know  my  cousin  Lilly,  Mrs.  Love- 
joy,"  he  remarks  casually. 

"  Yes — slightly,"  replies  Stella,  forgetful  of  the 
kisses  she  has  placed  on  Miss  Travers'  lips  in  the 
very  room  into  which  they  are  looking — the  one 
that  had  been  occupied  as  a  dressing-room  on  the 
occasion  of  the  hop  a  few  weeks  before.  Then  she 
says  anxiously :  "  The  papers  have  given  us  rumors 
that  Doctor  Cassadene  is  engaged  to  your  cousin. 
Do  you  know  whether  there  is  anything  in  it  ?" 

"  Don't  know  whether  there  is  anything  in  it 
now,"  answers  Lawrence  nonchalantly ;  "  but  at 
one  time  I  am  very  sure  the  doctor  was  rather  far 
gone  on  la  belle  Travers." 

"  At  one  time  ?     What  time  ?  " 

"  Oh,  not  so  long  ago." 

"  You  are  sure  ?  " 

"Yes,  ra-th-er  certain,"  the  words  are  drawled 
out  by  the  young  neophyte  in  manhood.  "  Just  ask 
him  about  the  Ocklawaha  boat  three  weeks  ago. 
Do  ! — I  want  to  hear  what  he  says  about  it  ?  "  and 
Lawrence  laughs.  "  Ask  him  if  he  didn't  pester  Lil 
with  his  attentions  until  she  actually  threatened  to, 
knock  him  overboard," 


196  A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT. 

"  A  very  curious  threat  for  a  young  lady  to 
make,"  mutters  Stella  with  pale  lips,  yet  blazing 
eyes. 

"  Yes,  my  cousin  was — I  mean,  is  a  very  extraor 
dinary  girl." 

"  And  she  has  made  you  very  much  her  confi 
dant,"  remarks  Mrs.  Lovejoy,  eager  to  get  more  in 
formation,  yet  dreading  what  she  may  hear.  Then 
she  says  suddenly,  "  Oh  !  perhaps  she  was  also  inter 
ested  in  you." 

"  I  never  tell  tales,"  remarks  Lawrence  in  the  easy 
vanity  of  his  new-found  manhood  ;  "  but  why 
ask  me  of  other  women  ?  At  present,  I  remember 
only — 

"Who?" — says  the  widow  impulsively;  for  she 
knows  that  at  present  she  is  in  a  very  becoming  posi 
tion  in  her  lazy  chair  with  a  most  alluring  glimpse  of 
arm  and  a  very  slight  but  catchy  peep  of  ankle  in 
view.  Upon  this  Mr.  Talbot, — who  from  the  knowl 
edge  bequeathed  him  of  her  sex  by  the  late  Miss 
Travers,  understands  very  well  how  to  woo  and  win 
women, —  rises  from  his  seat,  walks  deliberately  over 
to  the  fascinating,  knock- every- thing- else -out- of  - 
your-head  picture  before  him,  and  is  about  to  whis 
per,  "  You." 

But  at  this  moment,  the  fair  Stella  gives  a  sud 
den  start,  and  cries :  "  No,  don't  answer  that  ques 
tion  " — though  her  eyes  droop  under  the  ardent 
glances  of  young  Mr.  Wild  Oats. 

"  If  not  now,  very  soon,"  he  murmurs.  Then 
he  says  laughingly,  "  Why  didn't  you  let  me  answer 


you  ? 


Because   I   saw  a  naughty  boy's   eyes  were  full 


A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT.  197 

of  nonsense  !  "  answers  Stella  rising  and  tapping  him 
with  playful  fan.  "  Now  we  must  have  lunch.  Will 
you  escort  me  to  the  dining-room  ?  "  As  she  says 
this  Lawrence  Talbot  sees  a  sight  that  makes  him 
start.  From  the  selfsame  balcony  upon  which  Lilly 
Travers  suffered  but  six  weeks  before  Doctor  Freddie 
stands  and  glares  at  him  with  jealous  anguish ;  and 
mocking  laughter  comes  to  Talbot's  lips. 

"You  seem  very  merry!  "  remarks  Mrs.  Lovejoy. 

"  Have  I  not  cause  to  be  !  "  cries  Lawrence  signifi 
cantly,  and  feeling  very  proud  at  having  the  prettiest 
woman  in  the  hotel  to  sit  opposite  him  he  takes 
her  to  lunch  to  make  other  men  jealous,  especially 
Doctor  Frederick.  This  gentleman  shortly  enters 
the  dining-room,  slight  and  insult  in  his  soul  and 
hate  and  rage  in  his  heart  for  this  young  popinjay 
who  steps  so  easily  between  the  medical  Adonis 
and  the  woman  he  regarded  as  already  conquered. 

As  for  Lawrence,  unheeding  the  lowering  glances 
which  the  unfortunate  Cassadene  gives  him  from 
a  neighboring  table,  he  vivaciously  and  carelessly 
chats  over  his  meal  with  the  pretty  widow,  thought 
less  of  how  his  words  about  Miss  Travers'  trip  upon 
the  Ocklawaha  may  yet  be  brought  back  to  him  by 
a  man  who  hates  him  ;  careless,  though  he  dearly 
loves  Bessie,  yet  will,  after  the  manner  of  his  sex, 
scent  forbidden  fruit,  the  perfume  of  which  is 
sweet  unto  his  nostrils. 

Lunch  being  finished,  he  proffers  his  escort  to  Mrs. 
Lovejoy  for  a  drive  to  the  base-ball  grounds,  near 
the  railway  station,  where  two  professional  clubs 
from  great  Northern  cities  are  getting  into  early 
spring  training.  Here  they  meet  a  number  of  other 


A  FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT. 


people  from  the  Ponce  de  Leon,  and  Lawrence 
makes  new  acquaintances  and,  generally,  has  a  very 
pleasant  time  ;  for  somehow  or  other,  the  report  has 
got  about  that  he  is  a  very  rich  young  gentleman, 
and  the  eyes  of  the  fair  are  generally  kind  to  the 
petted  ones  of  fortune. 

So  going  home  from  a  pleasant  afternoon,  after  a 
very  lingering  hand-shake,  bestowed  upon  Stella  at 
parting,  and  making  some  future  engagements  with 
the  widow  who  has  very  kind  and  languishing  eyes 
for  the  "  naughty  boy  "  as  she  has  got  to  calling 
him,  he  passes  Doctor  Frederick  Cassadene.  To  his 
polite  nod  this  gentleman  replies  in  a  surly,  bull-dog 
sort  of  way,  and  as  Lawrence  passes  on  suddenly 
mutters  to  himself,  "  Where  have  I  seen  that  pop 
injay  before?  It  was  some  out-of-the-way  place!" 
and'  goes  to  thinking  of  the  matter  with  all  the 
energy  of  jealous  hate. 

As  for  Talbot  he  steps  elated  to  the  Cordova,  to 
find  a  little  note  waiting  for  him,  and  curiously 
enough  recognizes  the  handwriting,  though  Law 
rence  Talbot  has  never  seen  it  before.  A  little 
whistling:  "  Didn't  I  tell  you  ?"  and  opening  it,  he 
finds  inside  the  envelope  the  following  : 

"  Miss  Horton  presents  her  compliments  to  Mr.  Talbot,  and  asks 
him  if  he  can  spare  the  time  this  evening  to  call  upon  Miss  Constantia 
Oglethorpe  at  Sunny  Grove,  as  that  lady  is  anxious  to  learn  the  last 
news  that  he  has  of  Miss  Lilly  Travers,  as  she  is  greatly  concerned 
at  her  niece's  prolonged  absence,  and  failure  to  communicate  with  her. 

"  Miss  Horton  will  herself  be,  in  company  with  her  father,  at 
Sunny  Grove,  where  Mr.  Talbot  can  present  his  letter  of  introduc 
tion  to  her,  which  she  is  sorry  to  see  he  failed  to  bring  her,  as  he 
promised  last  evening." 

Upon    reading    this,    Lawrence's    eyes    become 


A  FLORIDA  ENCHANTMENT.  1Q0 

bright  with  triumph.  He  ejaculates  :  "  I  have 
her !  She  can  struggle — but  I  have  her  !  "  and 
hurrying  through  his  dinner  makes  a  wondrously 
elaborate  toilet  for  the  benefit  of  old  Miss  Con- 
stantia  Oglethorpe. 

Thus,  attired  and  embellished,  this  young  sprig  of 
fashion  about  eight  o'clock  in  the  evening  strolls  up 
the  well-known  walk  that  leads  to  his  aunt's  house — 
to  receive  a  pang  from  conscience.  He  has  not 
thought  much,  in  the  excitement  of  his  adventures, 
of  the  sorrow  that  Lilly  Travers'  disappearance  will 
bring  upon  those  who  loved  her  best.  But  now  this 
is  to  be  brought  home  to  him. 

Forcing  himself  to  remember  who  he  is  and  to 
forget  what  he  has  been,  Mr.  Talbot  succeeds  in 
preventing  himself  from  walking  in  unannounced 
and  giving  Miss  Connie  the  affectionate  salutation 
that  Lilly  was  wont  to  bestow  upon  her  dear  old 
relative. 

He  rings  the  bell  and  is  shown  into  the  parlor  by 
the  brown  Malvina,  who  tells  him  that  Miss  Ogle 
thorpe  will  be  down  in  a  minute,  and  leaves  him  sit 
ting  in  the  very  room  in  which  six  weeks  before  his 
marvellous  change  had  been  foreshadowed  by  old 
Hauser's  narrative.  There  it  is — the  little  ebony 
casket — open  as  Lilly  left  it.  He  gazes  at  it  in  a 
benumbed,  dazed  sort  of  way,  for  the  memories  it 
brings  to  him  would  appall  an  older  man. 

This  reverie  is  suddenly  broken  in  upon  by  ML-s 
Bessie's  voice  in  the  hall.  That  young  lady  who  has 
just  come  in  with  her  father,  is  saying :  "  Very  well, 
papa  ;  if  you  have  business  in  town  this  evening,  you 
may  leave  me  here  and  come  back  for  me  ; — only, 


20O  A  FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT. 

don't  let  your  phosphate  negotiations  keep  your 
little  Bessie  out  too  late." 

A  moment  after  the  front  door  is  closed  by  the 
major's  retreating  hand  and  the  veranda  echoes  with 
his  departing  footsteps,  while  Miss  Bessie  turns  to 
the  servant  and  remarks  :  "  Malvina,  tell  Miss  Connie 
I  am  in  the  parlor ;  "  and  walking  in,  is  surprised  to 
find  Mr.  Lawrence  Talbot,  who  has  risen  with  ex 
pectant  pleasure  on  his  face. 

"  Ah  !  you  have  come.  How  good  of  you  !  "  says 
the  young  lady,  who  has  apparently  made  up  her 
mind  to  forget  her  anger  of  the  night  before.  She 
smiles  sweetly  upon  him  and  continues :  "  I  hope 
you  have  left  your  advice  behind,  but  brought  your 
letter  of  introduction.  You  might  have  driven  out 
to  have  delivered  it  to-day  as  promised  ; — but  I  hear 
there  are  very  beautiful  widows  at  the  Ponce  de 
Leon  " — which  shows  that  somehow  she  has  learnt  of 
how  Lawrence  has  passed  his  day ;  this  town  of  St. 
Augustine  being  rather  small  and  gossip  travelling 
very  rapidly  about  it. 

"  Do  you  think  your  reception  of  me  last  evening 
warranted  my  bringing  you  this  letter  to-day  ? " 
remarks  Lawrence,  passing  over  the  document  in 
question. 

"  My  reception  of  you  was  all  you  could  ask," 
laughs  Bessie  ;  "  but  my  reception  of  your  advice  " 
—here  she  pouts  a  little, — "  my  reception  of  all 
advice  is  generally  unsatisfactory  to  those  who 
give  it.  You  will  shortly  discover  that,  Mr.  Law 
rence." 

Then,  opening  the  epistle  from  Miss  Travers, 
Bessie  has  no  more  eyes  for  anything  else.  This 


A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT.  2OI 

pleases  Lawrence  who  sapiently  thinks,  "  Is  not  love 
for  Lilly — love  for  me  !  " 

But  here  Miss  Connie  comes  in  to  welcome  him 
very  cordially,  and  say  :  "1  am  delighted  to  see  you, 
Lawrence — you  will  pardon  an  old  woman  calling 
you  that,  because  I  understand  from  Bessie  you  are 
a  cousin  of  Lilly's,  though  she  never  mentioned  your 
name  to  me." 

"  A  distant  one,"  murmurs  the  young  gentleman 
looking  with  very  kindly  eyes  upon  his  aunt  and 
righting  down  a  sudden  impulse  to  seize  the  dear 
lady  in  his  arms  and  give  her  one  of  Lilly  Travers' 
old-time  kisses. 

"And  yet,"  goes  on  Miss  Connie  musingly,  "  as  I 
look  in  your  face,  I  know  you  must  be  some  rela 
tive  of  Lilly's.  Why  !  you  are  as  much  like  her  as 
man  can  be  like  woman." 

A  minute  after  Lawrence  making  some  uncon 
scious  movement,  she  mutters  :  "  Lilly's  very  gest 
ure  !  and — and — I  have  not  heard  from  her  for  three 
weeks,"  and  tears  come  into  the  dear  old  lady's  eyes 
and  produce  pangs  of  conscience  in  the  prodigal,  for 
whose  return  the  fatted  calf  would  be  killed  did  his 
relative  but  recognize  him. 

Then  Constantia  goes  on  eagerly  to  question  Law 
rence  about  what  he  knows  of  her  niece's  latest  move 
ments,  and  some  of  her  queries  are  more  pertinent 
than  she  imagines  and  give  the  young  reprobate 
pangs  while  answering  them  ;  for  they  run  like  this  : 
Does  Lawrence  know  when  Lilly  will  return  to  St. 
Augustine?  Did  her  niece  appear  well  when  he 
last  saw  her?  That  Lilly  seemed  to  have  something 
on  her  mind  when  she  went  away,  and  Miss  Connie 


202  A   FLORIDA    ENCHANTMENT. 

hopes  that  is  all  over.  Then  she  whispers :  "  As 
her  cousin  perhaps  you  are  already  her  confidant. 
Did  she  say  anything  to  you  when  you  last  met  her 
about  Doctor  Cassadene  ?  " 

"  Oh  !  on  that  point,"  remarks  Lawrence  easily, 
happy  to  be  able  to  remove  Connie's  fears,  "  I  can 
assure  you  she  cares  no  more  for  Doctor  Fred  than 
I  do, — which  is  very  little." 

"But  where  do  you  think  she  is  now?"  queries 
Constantia  anxiously. 

"  She  came  to  Florida  some  three  weeks  ago.  She 
should  not  be — very  far — from  here,"  murmurs  the 
transformed  one,  struggling  with  a  blush. 

"Well,  I  have  always  said  she  went  to  Cuba. 
That  is  the  latest  travelling  fad,"  remarks  Miss  Con 
nie.  "  Though  Bessie  says  she  would  have  surely 
visited  us  had  she  come  within  a  hundred  miles  of 
St.  Augustine!  " 

"  But  I  know  she  was  here,"  cries  Talbot  im 
pulsively.  "  I  am  almost  certain  she  took  the  Ock- 
lawaha  trip  about  that  time." 

"  Indeed  ?"  returns  Miss  Connie.  "  I  shall  write 
to  the  officers  of  that  line  of  steamers  in  Palatka 
to-night  ;  " — which  she  does  this  very  evening,  to 
receive  an  answer  some  time  after  which  produces 
more  effect  on  the  young  gentleman  who  is  talking 
to  her  than  he  at  present  imagines. 

But  at  this  moment  they  are  startled  by  Bessie 
Horton.  That  young  lady  having  finished  a  second 
perusal  of  the  letter  of  introduction,  suddenly  hands 
it  to  Miss  Oglethorpe  crying  :  "  Connie,  read  it  your 
self.  Every  letter  that  girl  has  written  to  me  since 
she  left  for  New  York  has  had  a  meaning  between 


A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT.  203 

the  lines.  Tell  me — does  not  this  say  '  Adieu'  to 
me  ?  It  does  not  put  it  in  so  many  words,  but  I  feel 
<good-by'  as  I  read  it.  What  has  become  of  Lilly?" 

"  Well,"  says  Constantia,  looking  over  the  letter, 
"  I  do  not  see  anything  in  it  but  a  plain  note  intro 
ducing  a  young  gentleman  " — here  she  looks  at  Law 
rence  and  laughs — "  whom  Lilly  recommends  very 
highly  and  seems  to  want  to  put  before  you  as  a 
very  desirable  beau  and  perhaps  as  a — 

"  You  needn't  continue,"  interrupts  Bessie  with 
sudden  blush.  "  You  read  between  the  lines  very 
differently  to  what  I  do  !  " 

Then  they  fall  into  a  general  conversation  which 
lasts  but  a  short  half-hour,  being  broken  in  upon 
by  the  return  of  the  major,  who  has  not  found 
the  phosphate  speculators  that  he  expected  to  meet. 
And  Miss  Connie,  devoting  herself  to  the  ex-Confed 
erate,  leaves  Lawrence  free  to  make  himself  agree 
able  to  the  major's  daughter.  So  the  two  wander 
out  on  the  veranda  together,  into  the  light  of  a  new 
moon — a  different  one  to  that  which  shone  upon 
Lilly  Travers  and  Bessie  Horton  one  night  in  the 
same  spot,  not  two  months  ago. 

Then  anxious  to  put  off  the  look  of  anxiety  that 
is  upon  his  sweetheart's  face  (as  this  rapid  young 
gentleman  has  got  again  to  calling  Miss  Bessie  in  his 
mind)  he  remarks :  "  Don't  you  think  you  are  a  little 
morbid  in  your  views  about  Lilly?" 

"If  you  love  her  as  I  do, you  would  be  as  anxious 
for  her  as  I  am,"  says  Bessie.  Then  she  continues 
suddenly :  "  And  I  suppose  you  love  her  very  much," 
and  a  moment  after  smiles  uneasily  and  inquires  : 
"  How  much?  " 


204  A    FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT. 

"  About  as  much  as  I  do  myself,  "  answers  Law 
rence,  the  earnestness  of  truth  in  his  voice.  This 
reply  gains  him  Miss  Bessie's  good  graces. 

She  says  hurriedly:  "Ah,  you  love  her  almost  as 
much  as  I  do  !  "  and  after  this  the  conversation  is 
very  pleasant,  and  some  of  the  old  look  with  which 
she  regarded  Lilly  Travers  in  the  two  days  before 
that  young  lady  departed  from  St.  Augustine, 
seems  to  come  into  the  girl's  eyes.  After  a  little 
she  gets  to  telling  Lawrence  anecdotes  about  her 
self  and  Lilly  and  about  the  night  the  two  girls 
had  spent  together  in  the  rooms  up-stairs,  where 
Lilly  dinged  into  her  ears  all  evening — the  name 
of  a  young  man — as  she  made  her  pack  her 
trunks. 

"  Yes,  I  know,"  answers  Lawrence,  recollection 
making  his  eyes  bright  and  his  heart  beat  fast. 

Whereupon  the  young  lady  looks  at  him  in  as 
tonishment  for  a  moment,  and  then  says  :  "  Lilly 
Travers  must  think  a  great  deal  of  you.  She  told 
you  everything — even  that  last  unfortunate  remark 
I  made  about  you.  But  we  won't  think  about  that ; 
we'll  forget  it !  "  Then  she  cries  imperiously,  "  You 
must  try  to  make  me  forget  it  !  " 

"  I  will,"  says  Lawrence  gallantly,  and  he  keeps 
his  promise  so  well  that  their  tete-a-tete  is  only 
broken  by  the  major  calling  out  in  paternal  chaff  : 
"Come  in,  Bess;  it's  eleven  o'clock.  .1  must  take 
you  home  from  your  beau." 

"  Oh,  don't  mind  what  papa  says  !  "  whispers  Bes 
sie  with  a  blush.  "  He  thinks  every  young  man  that 
talks  to  me  adores  me,  and  sometimes  makes  fearful 
mistakes." 


A  FLORIDA  ENCHANTMENT.  2O5 

To  this,  Lawrence  answers  with  intention  :  "  He 
seems  more  discerning  than  his  daughter." 

"  Oh,  if  you  are  going  to  talk  to  me  in  that  way," 
says  Bessie,  "  it  is  time  for  me  to  go  ;  "  and  she 
passes  into  the  parlor,  pausing  at  the  open  window, 
to  toss  over  her  pretty  shoulder  a  glance  that  shows 
she  is  not  very  angry  at  the  gentleman  she  is  leaving. 

Driving  home  that  evening,  she  remarks  to  her 
father :  "  I  wonder  if  the  young  men  were  as  nice 
when  you  were  a  boy,  papa  ?  " 

"  Much  finer,"  replies  the  major  decidedly.  "  In 
my  day  the  bucks  and  blades  would  fight  for  a 
woman  as  well  as  love  one."  Here  the  veteran 
chuckles  to  himself  and  continues  :  "  Young  Tal- 
bot  seems  to  have  made  a  very  favorable  impression 
on  my  little  Bessie ;  "  and  gives  her  ear  such  a  play 
ful  pinch  that  little  Bessie  gives  a  playful  little 
squeal. 

As  for  the  young  gentleman  spoken  of,  he  bids 
Miss  Connie  an  extraordinarily  tender  farewell  for 
one  who  has  known  her  an  hour  or  two,  for  he  says 
to  his  aunt  :  "  Do  you  know  what  I  am  going  to 
do?" 

"  No,"  remarks  that  lady,  somewhat  astonished  at 
the  affection  in  his  glance. 

"  I  am  going  to  give  you  a  kiss,  and  I  am  going  to 
adopt  you  as  my  aunt — for  Lilly's  sake,"  and  does 
so  though  Miss  Connie  is  astounded. 

She  has  a  very  tender  heart,  and  something  in  this 
young  man's  demeanor  seems  to  have  got  very  close 
to  it,  and  she  mutters,  returning  his  salute :  "  You 
have  so  many  little  torn-boy  ways  that  remind  me 
of  Lilly,  my  dear,  that  I  adopt  you  as  my  nephew." 


2O6  A  FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT. 

So  he  goes  away,  murmuring  to  himself :  "  The 
nephew  will  try  to  make  up  the  loss  of  the  niece," 
and  gets  home  to  the  Cordova  in  a  very  happy 
state. 

Here  he  is  greeted  effusively  by  his  man  Jack. 
That  sable  worthy  says  :  "  Yo'  did  yo'self  proud  to 
day  Mr.  Lil — I  mean  Lawrence.  Yo'  skooped  in  de 
widder  from  de  doc,  I  seed  yp'.  I'm  doin'  a  leetle 
myself;  I'se  caught  Gus's  new  gal — Antoinette  of  de 
Alcazar — Gus'ld  like  to  razor  me,  he  would. — And 
by  de  way,  Massa  Lawrence,  I'se  been  making  queries 
about  heah,  and  twenty  dollars  a  month  may  be  good 
wages  for  a  maid  but  fifty's  'bout  de  figure  for  a 
gen'man's  body-servant.  I  rather  cal'late  my  wages 
has  been  riz  by  act  of  Pro'dence,  Massa  Lawrence." 
"  Yes — I  rather  think  they  have  !  "  assents  Talbot. 
— Then  he  says  suddenly,  "  But  keep  the  act  of 
Providence  to  yourself  for  heaven's  sake  !  "  and  so 
goes  to  bed. 

The  next  day  Lawrence  finds  his  way  to  the 
orange  groves  on  the  San  Sebastian,  and  passes  a 
very  pleasant  afternoon  with  Miss  Horton.  Where 
he  must  have  done  some  good  for  himself,  as  the 
girl's  eyes  look  very  tenderly  after  him  as  he  drives 
away. 

So  the  days  run  on,  Lawrence  struggling  to  gain 
her  heart  and  forgetting  everything  but  Bessie's 
smiles. 

But  devoting  himself  too  closely  to  his  work  he 
wounds  some  others.  First  young  Mr.  Wilkes  whom 
he  succeeds  in  ousting  from  his  sweetheart's  mind, 
orange  groves  and  all  :  and  second  Mrs.  Lovejoy,  who 
is  not  accustomed  to  being  neglected  by  gentlemen 


A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT.  2O/ 

and  takes  his  defection  in  very  bad  part,  though 
she  is  kindness  itself  whenever  she  chances  to  meet 
Mr.  Talbot.  Thus  time  goes  on  till  one  spring  day 
brings  first  the  great  joy  of  life  to  Lawrence  Talbot, 
and  afterwards — concern,  anxiety  and  perhaps  terror. 

It  is  an  afternoon  when  his  happiness  comes  to 
him.  Miss  Bessie  and  he  have  by  an  accident  that 
takes  place  quite  frequently,  happened  to  drop  in 
upon  Miss  Constantia  about  the  same  time,  and  that 
lady  having  said  to  them  with  a  meaning  smile, 
"  You  young  people  go  and  amuse  yourselves,"  the 
two  have  wandered  off  through  the  grounds  to  the 
shores  of  Matanzas  Inlet,  and  are  there  amusing 
themselves  in  the  childish  sport  of  teasing  the  un 
fortunate  little  fiddler  crabs  of  this  region,  which 
infest  in  myriads  the  vicinity  of  the  inlet. 

Bessie  is  making  a  very  pretty  and  exciting  pic 
ture,  as,  with  dress  gathered  up  in  one  hand  and 
Mr.  Talbot's  dude  cane  in  the  other,  she  prevents 
the  retreat  of  these  hideous  little  creatures  to  their 
holes  of  refuge  in  the  neighboring  sand.  Mr.  Tal 
bot  in  the  easy  manner  of  his  sex  is  enjoying  her 
vivacious  exclamations  rather  languidly,  enveloped 
in  the  smoke  of  a  cigar  in  which  Miss  Bessie  has 
given  him  permission  to  indulge. 

The  girl  in  the  excitement  of  the  chase  has  un 
gloved  her  hands  and  is  at  present  maliciously 
filling  up  the  hole  of  an  unfortunate  "  fiddler  "  to 
wards  which  its  owner  is  travelling  with  the  speed 
of  despair  ;  when  suddenly  she  gives  a  little  startled 
"  Oh  ! — Oh  goodness  !  "  and  grows  pale,  and  Law 
rence  coming  to  her  says  :  "  What's  the  matter  ?  " 

"  Oh,  my  goodness  !  " 


208  A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT. 

"  What's  the  matter — darling?  " 

"  Oh,  gracious  !  I've  lost  the  ring  Lilly  gave  me 
down  that  horrid  fiddler's  hole." 

"  Never  mind,"  says  Mr.  Talbot  grandiloquently, 
"  I'll  get  you  another." 

"  Get  me  the  same  !  "  implores  Bessie,  "  Lilly  would 
never  forgive  me,  if  I  lost  it.  She  will  be  coming 
some  day,  to  cry  '  Bess,  where  is  that  ring?  '  "  and 
tears  of  appeal  come  into  the  blue  eyes.  Then  Miss 
Horton  suddenly  ejaculates  :  "  Look  out  !  they'll 
bite  you."  For  Lawrence  has  pulled  up  his  coat 
sleeve  and  is  digging  with  his  hand  into  the  den  of 
the  fiddlers. 

u  Pooh !  "  remarks  that  young  gentleman  ;  "  they 
are  more  afraid  of  me  than  I  am  of  them  ;  "  and 
after  a  little  excavating  with  his  cane  in  the  sand 
and  groping  around  in  the  hole  with  his  finger,  he 
finally  brings  out  two  fiddlers  and  the  ring ;  the 
fiddlers  very  much  the  worse  for  wear  and  the  ring 
as  good  as  new,  as  he  laughingly  remarks. 

"  Oh,  thank  you,"  says  Bessie  in  an  excited  way. 
"  How  brave  you  are,  to  put  your  hand  among 
those  awful  things." 

"  I  am  delighted  to  be  able  to  restore  the  ring," 
says  Lawrence,  taking  her  hand.  "  How  did  you 
come  to  lose  it?" 

"  Well,  Lilly  didn't  seem  to  have  the  right  meas 
ure.  Her  second  finger  was  the  same  size  as  my 
big  finger,  and  I  suppose  she  selected  it  by  her  own, 
and  made  some  mistake." 

Of  this  statement  Lawrence  has  no  doubt,  for  he 
remembers  that  Lilly  Travers'  hand  had  grown  very 
rapidly  just  before  sending  the  present,  and  easily 


A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT.  2OQ 

sees  how  it  could  be  much  too  large  for  the  little 
ringers  he  still  holds  very  tight. 

He  says :  "  I  am  sorry  the  ring  is  too  large,"  then 
goes  on  very  seriously,  "  Let  me  fit  this  finger," 
selecting  the  engagement  one,  "  with  a  ring  that  I 
hope  will  be  exactly  the  right  size  ?  "  and  his  face 
grows  pale,  while  hers  becomes  very  red. 

"  I — I  couldn't  take  a  present  from  you,"  mutters 
Bessie,  who  loves  beautiful  things,  though  her  self- 
respect  prompts  her  to  refuse  this  one,  "  unless  I 
asked  Papa." 

"Very  well,"  says  Talbot  brightly;  "we'll  ask 
Papa  together :  "  his  arm  going  around  a  lithe  graceful 
waist  that  thrills  under  his  clasp,  as  Bessie  droops 
her  head  and  murmurs  :  "  Ask  Papa  ! — what?  " 

"  Ask  Papa,  WHAT  ?  "  echoes  Lawrence  indignantly 
(for  he  mistakes  maiden  bashfulness  for  maiden 
idiocy) — "  ask  Papa  for  his  daughter  of  course  ! 
Tell  Papa  that  I  am  dying  to  marry  the  sweetest — 
dearest — doviest — darling — girl — in  the  world  !  " 

Each  of  these  assertions,  Mr.  Lawrence  who  has 
inherited  from  the  late  Miss  Travers  a  very  deft 
knowledge  of  her  sex,  emphasizes  quite  tenderly 
and  very  beautifully'and  carries  his  suit  on  in  such 
a  vigorous  manner  that  when  he  brings  the  young 
lady,  under  his  charge,  back  to  Miss  Oglethorpe's 
house,  he  says  :  "  Aunt  Connie,  don't  look  at 
Bessie ;  she's  very  much  embarrassed,  she  has  just 
become  engaged.  This  is  her  first  engagement, 
and  she  is  not  accustomed  to  it."  Then  he  goes 
up  to  the  girl  and  whispers,  almost  tremblingly  : 
"  Is  it  the  first  engagement,  Bessie  ?  " 

And  Bessie  answers  humbly:  "  No  /  " 
14 


210  A  FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT. 

"  You  have  been  engaged  before,"  gasps  Law 
rence,  growing  pale. 

"  Yes  !  " 

"  My  God  !  " 

"  When  I  was  ten  ;  that  is  the  only  time,"  mutters 
Miss  Horton.  "Little  Willie  Johnson  said  I  was  to 
marry  him,  but  he  didn't  give  me  any  ring."  Then 
Bessie  commences  to  laugh,  and  says:  "What  makes 
you  so  jealous,  you  foolish  fellow ;  "  and  continues 
eagerly :  "  Have  you  ever  been  engaged  ?  " 

"  Never  to  a  woman  !  "  stammers  Lawrence. 

"  Well,  then,  you  may  commence  with  me,"  says 
Bessie  archly. 

So  the  two  turn  again  to  Miss  Connie,  who  has 
been  enjoying  a  distant  view  of  this  scene,  and  Law 
rence  remarks  :  "  I  will  leave  her  in  your,  hands. 
Her  father  will  come  for  her  soon.  I  believe  there 
are  rings  in  jewellers'  stores  in  St.  Augustine,  but 
none  worthy  of  her.  Bessie,  would  you  like  to  wait 
until  I  can  go  to  New  York  for  it  ?  " 

"  No  ;  give  me  a  moss  agate,  but  don't  go  away !  " 
answers  Bess  anxiously. 

Then  they  walk  down  to  the  gate  together,  where 
Lawrence  entraps  his  sweetheart  by  asking  :  "  When 
will  you  go  to  church  with  me  ?  " 

"  Next  Sunday,  with  pleasure." 

"  Done  !  "  cries  the  boy. 

"  Oh  !  not  to  get  married  ! "  screams  Bessie.  "  I — I 
don't  mean  that."  And  looking  at  him  with  maiden 
dignity  she  says :  "  Certainly  not  until  you  receive 
my  father's  consent,  Mr.  Talbot.  Besides — Lawrence, 
I  am  going  to  wait  until  Lilly  can  be  my  bridesmaid." 

This  brings  dismay  upon  him  and  he  cries  eagerly  : 


A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT.  211 

"  Wait  till  then  !  Miss  Tracers  maybe — in  Europe  ; 
may  be  dead." — Then  he  mutters  "  Oh,  no  ;  I  don't 
mean  that.  I  don't  mean  that,"  for  tears  have  come 
into  Bessie's  eyes  at  his  thoughtless  suggestion. 

To  this  the  young  lady  after  smuggling  away  the 
dewdrops  from  her  eyelids  whispers,  as  if  struck  by 
a  sudden  idea  :  "  Lilly  told  you  everything.  What 
made  you  such  great  friends  ?"  and  a  little  blush  of 
jealousy  comes  on  her  cheek. 

But  not  to  remain,  for  Lawrence  says  solemnly : 
"  You  !  She  always  told  me  you  were  the  girl  I 
must  marry." 

"  Why,  that  is  what  she  insinuated  to  me  very 
frequently.  That  makes  the  reason  greater  that  we 
should  wait  until  she  can  be  my  bridesmaid." 

These  words  make  Lawrence  ponder  as  he  goes 
to  his  hotel,  after  a  parting  that  puts  him  into  the 
seventh  heaven. 

He  meditates  on  this  clog  to  his  happiness  over 
his  dinner  and  then  suddenly  thinks  he'll  go  and  ask 
Major  Horton  for  his  daughter — that  will  give  him 
another  interview  with  Miss  Bessie  who  must  be  at 
home  by  this  time.  Thus  resolved  he  drives  rapidly 
up  the  San  Sebastian  road  immediately  after  dinner, 
to  receive  another  sensation. 

He  is  greeted  by  the  major  on  the  door-step  of  his 
house  :  who  says,  in  a  very  solemn  voice,  "  Lawrence, 
come  this  way." 

"  Bessie  has  told  you  ?  "  gasps  the  youth  growing 
frightened. 

•"  That  you  want  to  marry  her  ?  Certainly — my 
daughter  has  no  secrets  from  her  father  !  " — remarks 
the  ex-Confederate  confidently.  Then  he  goes  on 


212  A  FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT. 

"  Show  me  that  you  are*able  to  take  care  of  her,  and 
as  you  are  a  relative  of  Miss  Travers  I  shall  be  happy 
to  consider  your  proposal. 

"  Very  well,"  assents  Lawrence.  "A  letter  from 
my  bankers  will  convince  you  that  I  am  worth  con 
siderably  over  a  million  dollars  !  " 

"  Wheugh  !  "  This  is  a  surprised  but  joyous 
whistle  from  the  future  father-in-law. 

"  I  know,"  the  young  man  mutters  impulsively, 
"  that  a  million  dollars  is  little  enough  for  such  a 
young  lady  as  Miss  Bessie." 

"Yes;  she'll  agree  with  you  on  that,"  remarks 
the  major  dryly.  "  But,  still,  you  must  do  the  best 
you  can  on  a  million.  It's  very  hard,  but  you  must 
fight  your  battle  on  the  line  of  a  million,"  and  the 
vendor  of  phosphate  lands  chuckles  to  himself  quite 
cheerily. 

"  Very  well,"  cries  Lawrence  enthusiastically ; 
"I'll  tell  her." 

But  to  his  astonishment,  the  old  gentleman  stops 
him,  saying  :  "  Not  now  !  "  in  solemn  voice.  "  Do 
not  speak  of  your  wedding  now.  At  present  she  is 
too  heart-broken." 

"  Too  heart-broken  ?" 

"  Yes — over  the  news,"  adds  the  major.  "  You 
haven't  heard?  Miss  Connie  has  just  received  in 
formation— 

"  Of  what  ? "  gasps  Lawrence,  some  undefined 
anxiety  coming  to  him. 

"  Of  Lilly  Travers." 

And  before  he  can  reply  to  this,  Bessie  has  come 
out  of  the  house  and  is  sobbing  in  his  arms,  "  Law 
rence,  Lilly  is  dead  !  " 


A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT.  213 

"  Dead?  Impossible,"  he  cries.  "  I  know  she  is 
alive." 

"  No,  you  are  mistaken  ;  Lilly  is  dead.  The 
Ocklawaha  steamboat  people  have  just  sent  Miss 
Connie  a  dress  picked  up  in  the  river  and  she  has 
recognized  it  as  one  of  Lilly's.  You  remember — 
you  said  she  had  taken  the  Ocklawaha  trip.  She 
must  have  been  swept  off  unnoticed  by  some 
branch  from  an  overhanging  tree,  in  the  darkness." 

"  You  say  they  found  the  dress,"  asks  Lawrence 
meditatively.  Then  he  says  eagerly  and  confi 
dently  :  "  Did  they  find  the  body  in  it  ?  " 

"  Oh  !  "  cries  Bessie,  with  open  eyes  ;  "  I  never 
thought  of  that." 

And  the  major  adds  approvingly  :  "  Young  man, 
when  Bessie  has  spent  your  million  for  you,  you 
had  better  go  into  the  detective  business." 

"  I  will,"  returns  Lawrence.  "  But  first  I  will 
prove  to  you  that  Lilly  T ravers  is  alive." 

"  Do  that,"  says  Bessie,  joy  drying  up  her  tears 
and  making  her  eyes  flash,  "  and  I'll — 

"  Marry  me  ? "  interrupts  Lawrence  with  even 
greater  enthusiasm. 

"  Yes  !  "  answers  the  girl. 

"  Without  Lilly  as  bridesmaid  ?  " 

"  Without  anything  save  a  minister  and  a  ring 
and — a  father  !  " 

"  Very  well,"  cries  Lawrence  in  happy  voice  ; 
"  I  take  you  at  your  word. — But  don't  cry  " — for 
the  girl  is  sobbing  on  his  shoulder.  "  Don't.  Lilly 
Travers  is  alive! — I'll  prove  it!"  for  into  this  young 
gentleman's  head  has  suddenly  come  what  to  his 
inexperience  seems  an  idea  worthy  of  a  Solomon, 


214  A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT. 


CHAPTER    XVI. 

DOCTOR    FREDDIE    PLAYS    THE    VIRTUOUS 
DETECTIVE. 

IMPRESSED  with  the  brilliancy  of  the  novel  scheme 
that  has  sprung  into  his  brain,  Mr.  Lawrence  con 
tinues  his  conversation  with  his  fiance'e  ;  her  father 
having  wisely  left  them  to  themselves ;  and  obtains 
from  his  sweetheart  the  following  additional  infor 
mation  :  that  not  only  Lilly's  gown  has  been  discov 
ered  in  the  Ocklawaha,  but  also  the  dress  of  her 
maid  Jane. 

"  That  adds  to  the  mystery,"  remarks  Miss  Bessie. 

"  Not  at  all ;  it  elucidates  it.  The  chances  are  al 
together  against  Miss  Travers  and  her  m-aid  having 
both  been  swept  off  the  upper  deck  of  the  boat  by 
the  same  cypress  branch  at  the  same  moment.  I 
presume  the  gown  would  hardly  be  considered  valu 
able,"*  he  remarks.  "  It  was  rather  old,  wasn't  it?" 

"  Oh,"  replies  Bessie,  "  about  the  poorest  one  I 
imagine  Lilly  had." 

"  Very  well ;  she  probably  thought  the  Ocklawaha 
River  was  a  good  old-clothes  basket  and  tossed  it 
overboard  before  she  left  the  boat.  However,"  he 
continues,  "  I  am  positive  no  accident  has  happened 
to  Miss  Travers,  and  will  very  shortly  obtain  a  com 
munication  from  her  to  that  effect." 

"  It  seems  to  me  you  can  do  everything,"  mur 
murs  Bessie  in  first-love  admiration. 

"  I  can  do  this — as  soon  as  I  can  obtain  Lilly's  ad 
dress  from  her  lawyers  or  bankers ; — which  I  will  do 


A   FLORIDA    ENCHANTMENT.  21$ 

iay  after  to-morrow  in  New  York,"  returns  Mr. 
stoutly. 

'riti  New  York  ?  You  are  going  to  leave  me?" 
cries' •  he  girl  making  a  sorry  face. 

"Yes!"  ' 

".Oh!"  There  is  a  choking  in  Bessie's  little 
-throat. 

"  But  in  five  days  I  will  return,"  answers  Lawrence 
reassuringly.  "  During  my  absence  I  must  make 
the  necessary  financial  arrangements  for  our  mar 
riage,  so  that  I  will  be  free  to  take  you  for  a  long 
trip  to  Europe.  You  would  like  to  spend  the  sum 
mer  there,  darling  ?  "  he  adds  inquiringly. 

"  Wouldn't  I  ?  "  replies  Bessie,  her  eyes  blazing  at 
the  thought  of  making  the  great  trans-Atlantic  ferry 
trip  ;  "  that  is,  if  Papa  will  let  me  go." 

"  I  will  persuade  him,"  says  Lawrence  confi 
dently. 

Then  after  a  tender  parting — for  Miss  Bessie,  hav 
ing  promised  to  marry  him,  now  makes  no  further 
concealment  of  her  devotion  for  this  rapid  wooer — 
he  departs  suggesting  that  the  young  lady  soothe 
Miss  Connie's  fears  as  soon  as  possible,  for  Lawrence 
cannot  bear  the  thought  of  looking  on  his  dear 
aunt's  grief,  that  he  could  assuage  in  an  instant  but 
at  awful  sacrifice.  At  the  Cordova,  not  finding  his 
man  Jack  at  his  rooms,  he  goes  to  packing  on  his 
own  account.  He  is  interrupted,  in  his  occupation, 
by  the  entrance  of  his  worthy,  who  comes  in  in  a 
state  of  tremendous  excitement. 

"  Golly !  "  he  says,  his  eyes  and  teeth  both  gleam 
ing  very  white — "  Mr.  Lawrence,  does  yo'  kno' 
dar's  a  repo't  'roun'  town  dat  we's  bof  dead  ?  " 


2l6  A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT. 

"  We're  both  dead  ?  "  echoes  Lawrence  in 

• 

interest. 

"  Yessah  ;  dey  has  it  'round  at  de  Ponce  dat  lly 
Travers  an'  Jane  Rouser  has  bof  been  drownded  in 
de  Ocklawaha.  Gus,  de  secon'  man  at  de  Ponce  de 
Leon,  tole  me  all  'bout  my  death.  He  was  cryin' 
ovah  me — my  '  lobed  mem'ry  '  he  said — whaugh  ! 
whaugh  !  whaugh  !  "  And  the  valet  goes  into  a  hid 
eous  guffaw  at  the  tenderness  displayed  by  his  old 
adorer. 

"  My  Heaven  !  you  didn't  say  anything  to  Gus?" 
cries  Lawrence  suspiciously. 

"  No,  sah  ;  I  was  laughin'  so  I  couldn't  speak,  sah  ; 
an'  Gus  he  call  me  an  unsympathetic  scal'wag,  sah  !  " 

"  Very  well,"  says  his  master ;  "  keep  a  quiet 
tongue  between  your  white  teeth  and  finish  pack 
ing  our  trunks.  We  leave  here  to-morrow." 

Relinquishing  this  duty  to  his  man,  Mr.  Talbot 
strides  out  of  the  hotel,  and  lighting  a  cigar  sits  in 
the  plaza  and  listens  to  the  fountain  and  meditates 
upon  his  future  course.  He  thinks  what  a  wonder 
fully  brilliant  mind  he  has  for  one  so  young  ;  for  this 
sudden  idea  has  come  to  him  :  he  will  go  to  New 
York  and  first  make  everything  certain  with  regard  to 
his  fortune  by  removing  all  the  securities  deposited 
by  Lilly  Travers  in  the  safe  deposit  company's  box  she 
had  engaged.  This  he  considers,  and  very  rightly, 
may  save  trouble,  as  rumors  of  Miss  Travers'  death 
coming  to  her  relatives,  some  investigation  might  be 
made  of  her  estate,  which  would  perhaps  disclose 
the  locality  of  her  strong  box  and  place  serious  ob 
stacles,  both  legal  and  otherwise,  to  his  obtaining 
possession  of  the  bonds  that  are  to  furnish  support 


A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT.  217 

to  himself  and  his  charming  bride.  Immediately 
after  this,  from  New  York  he  will  mail  a  letter, 
written  in  his  very  best  imitation  of  the  late  Miss 
Travers'  feminine  style  and  hand,  to  Miss  Constantia 
Oglethorpe,  informing  that  lady  that  her  niece  is 
well  and  happy  and  of  her  intended  immediate  de 
parture  for  Europe. 

This  he  fondly  expects  will  eliminate  any  idea 
from  his  aunt's  mind  of  her  beloved  niece  being  out 
of  the  world  and  pave  the  way  to  his  nuptials  with 
his  charming  sweetheart,  which  he  determines  shall 
take  place  before  the  end  of  the  Florida  season,  if 
possible. 

The  details  of  these  transactions  having  been  set 
tled  to  his  own  satisfaction,  he  goes  back  to  his  room 
in  the  Cordova,  to  find  his  trunks  already  locked  and 
strapped,  and  to  think  that  his  man  Jack  is  turning 
out  a  better  valet  than  he  had  at  first  supposed  to 
be  possible. 

So  the  next  morning,  after  liquidating  his  bill,  he 
drives  to  the  "  Florida  Special  "  in  company  with  his 
man,  to  receive  a  most  charming  and  delightful  sur 
prise  from  his  little  fiancee,  for  that  young  lady,  in 
.company  with  her  father,  is  waiting  for  him  at  the 
depot.  His  parting  from  her  makes  him  curiously 
happy,  as  she,  in  the  sorrow  of  losing  him  for  a 
little  while,  promises  that  the  next  time  this  train 
runs  out  for  the  North  with  Lawrence  Talbot,  he 
shall  take  her  with  him  as  his  very  own — his  bride. 

The  sun  shines  brightly  as  the  train  moves  out 
of  the  station,  and  Mr.  Talbot  is  exceedingly  con 
tent,  and  thinks  the  world  before  him  is  now  very 
easy,  and  does  not  know  at  this  careless  and  happy 


2iB  A  FLORIDA  ENCHANTMENT. 

moment  that  both  he  and  his  man  Jack  are  wearing 
the  two  identical  suits  of  clothes  in  which  they  de 
parted  from  the  boat  on  the  Ocklawaha  River,  some 
three  weeks  before,  and  that  Dr.  Freddie  Cassadene, 
having  incidentally  come  to  bid  adieu  to  a  lady 
patient  to  whom  he  wishes  to. show  particular  atten 
tion,  has  put  his  eye  upon  these  two  same  suits  of 
clothes  and  has  suddenly  said  to  himself :  "  Jove  ! 
I  know  where  I  first  saw  Lawrence  Talbot. — He  and 
his  man  left  the  boat  at  Orange  Spring  Landing  that 
night  on  the  Ocklawaha — the  night  Lilly  Travers 
disappeared — the  night  she  perhaps  was  drowned  !  " 
For  the  rumor  of  Miss  Travers'  fate  has  travelled 
pretty  quickly  about  the  town  and  has  reached  Doc 
tor  Fred's  ears. 

So  this  medical  gentleman  goes  to  turning  this 
matter  of  Lawrence  Talbot  leaving  the  boat  the 
night  his  cousin  Lilly  Travers  disappeared,  and  some 
curious  diagnosis  of  the  case  of  the  missing  heiress 
coming  into  his  mind,  he  writes  a  letter  to  the 
Ocklawaha  boat  company,  the  answer  to  which 
leads  him  in  the  course  of  time  to  an  extraordinary 
conclusion. 

Thoughtless  of  any  links  he  may  be  weaving  to 
connect  himself  with  his  earlier  self,  Lawrence  Tal 
bot  arrives  in  New  York,  taking  up  his  residence  at 
a  hotel,  and  the  next  day,  giving  the  pass-word,  "  My 
turn  next,"  and  signing  his  name  in  the  books  of 
the  Central  Safe  Deposit  Company,  turns  the  combi 
nation  in  the  lock  of  the  private  box  left  open  to 
him  by  the  bounteous  hand  of  Lilly  Travers  and 
proceeds  to  make  himself  the  possessor  of  the  wealth 
that  young  lady  had  deposited. 


A  FLORIDA  ENCHANTMENT.  2 1C) 

This  in  the  course  of  the  day  he  transfers  to  an 
other  box  engaged  in  his  own  name  in  another  safe 
deposit  company ;  and  these  securities  being  de 
posited  for  his  own  special  use  and  benefit,  he  re 
marks  to  himself  :  "  If  Lilly  Travers  comes  to  life 
now,  she  will  be  a  very  poor  girl  ;  in  building  up  my 
own  fortune  I  have  wrecked  hers." 

A  small  portion  of  these  bonds,  however,  he 
sells  and  opens  an  account  in  a  well-known  bank, 
leaving  with  them  a  thumping  big  balance  for  future 
emergencies  and  the  wedding  trip  that  is  now  grow 
ing  gradually  nearer  and  more  certain. 

Then  he  turns  his  attention  to  Miss  Lilly  Travers' 
affairs,  and  indites  a  letter  in  that  young  lady's 
handwriting  to  Miss  Connie  in  St.  Augustine,  Lilly 
stating  that  she  has  heard  from  Mr.  Talbot  the 
anxiety  felt  for  her  by  her  relative,  and  writes  to 
reassure  her.  That  her  maid  Jane  has  confessed  to 
her  that  she  tossed  the  garments  over  from  the 
Ocklawaha  boat  that  night  in  her  careless  negro  way 
to  avoid  the  trouble  of  carrying  the  worn-out  things 
along.  Miss  Lilly  further  states  that  she  is  going  to 
Europe  for  an  extended  tour  and  may  perhaps  even 
visit  Egypt  and  India  and  return  via  Japan  and  San 
Francisco ;  consequently,  her  aunt  is  to  put  all 
anxiety  out  of  her  head  regarding  her. 

This  letter  Mr.  Talbot  himself  posts  in  New  York, 
and  then  an  emotional  idea  coming  into  his  head- 
that  poor  Bessie  will  feel  slighted  if  Lilly  does  not 
write  to  her — he  chuckles  to  himself  at  the  thought, 
and  sends  a  very  gushing  girl's  letter,  also  in  Miss 
Travers'  handwriting  and  bearing  Lilly's  signature, 
to  his  sweetheart,  giving  a  very  good  recommenda- 


220  A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT. 

tion  to  himself  and  congratulating  Bessie  upon 
the  fine  fellow  she  is  going  to  get  as  a  husband  ; 
stating  that  Miss  Travers  cannot  be  present  at  the 
wedding,  on  account  of  her  immediate  departure  for 
Europe,  but  that  she  sends  through  Lawrence  a 
present  that  will  show  her  love  for  "  dearest  Bessie  " 
and  "  dear  Lawrence,"  whom  she  hopes  to  meet  in 
Europe  very  shortly. 

Looking  over  this,  Mr.  Talbot  thinks  he  has 
perpetrated  a  very  sweet,  practical  joke  upon  his 
fiancee,  and  sealing  it  hands  it  to  his  man  John  to 
post ;  for  inspired  with  the  delights  that  New  York 
offers  to  a  wandering  bachelor,  he  is  anxious  to  go 
to  dinner  with  one  or  two  gilded  youths  erstwhile 
adorers  of  Lilly  Travers  whose  re-acquaintance  he 
has  made  by  letters  of  introduction  to  which  he  has 
also  attached  Lilly  Travers'  signature,  this  youthful 
penman  seeming  like  most  other  forgers  to  glory  in 
his  art. 

In  company  with  these  young  gentlemen  he  has  a 
very  astonishing  and  enjoyable  and  perhaps  wild 
evening,  for  he  sees  New  York  by  gas-light  for  the 
first  time  from  the  standpoint  of  a  man  of  wealth 
and  fashion  and  it  appears  to  him  a  very  beautiful 
though  a  wondrously  wicked  city:  and  leaves  his 
companions  vastly  delighted  that  he  has  never  mar 
ried  one  of  them. 

The  next  morning  finds  him  on  a  south-bound 
train,  with  a  very  handsome  present  he  has  bought 
at  Tiffany's  to  give  in  the  name  of  Lilly  to  his 
sweetheart,  and  an  engagement  ring  that  he  fondly 
thinks  will  make  Bessie  open  her  dear  blue  eyes. 

So  on  the   evening  of  the  fifth  day  from  his  de- 


A   FLORIDA    ENCHANTMENT.  221 

parture,  Mr.  Lawrence  Talbot,  accompanied  by  his 
man  John  Robbins,  arrives  once  more  in  St.  Augus 
tine,  to  encounter  more  exciting  adventures  than 
ever  dreamed  of  in  his  philosophy ;  to  learn  that  a 
man's  life  may  be  more  free  and  easy  than  a  woman's, 
but  that  it  has  dangers  and  anxieties  such  as  seldom 
come  to  the  other  sex  to  make  it  bald. 

These  troubles  do  not  come  upon  him  imme 
diately.  The  first  few  days  of  his  return  are  very 
rosy  ones.  Miss  Connie  has  received  her  letter,  and 
relieved  of  all  anxiety  about  the  fate  of  her  beloved 
niece,  thinks  only  of  furthering  the  happiness  of  the 
young  gentleman  who  journeyed  all  the  way  to  New 
York,  to  bring  back  peace  to  her  mind. 

Seconded  by  this  lady,  in  the  course  of  a  few  days, 
Lawrence,  though  slightly  opposed  by  the  major, 
who  thinks  it  would  not  be  complimentary  to  Bessie, 
to  let  her  go  very  easily,  succeeds  in  getting  his 
sweetheart  to  mention  the  day  upon  which  she  will 
make  him  her  husband,  without  the  assistance  of  the 
absent  Lilly,  as  bridesmaid.  Upon  which  Mr.  Tal- 
bot  gives  her  the  present  he  has  brought  with  him, 
purporting  to  have  been  sent  by  Miss  Travers,  and 
is  very  much  astonished,  and  perhaps  somewhat  dis 
mayed,  to  find  that  the  artful  letter  he  had  forged 
to  Miss  Bessie  has  not  yet  arrived  from  New  York. 

"  You  are  sure  you  didn't  get  it  ?  "  he  asks  anx 
iously. 

"  Certainly  !  "  answers  the  girl.  "  You  are  positive 
she  sent  it  ?  " 

"  Yes — she  told  me  she  did — in  fact,  I  saw  her 
write  it,"  mutters  this  young  man,  who  has  got  to 
chuckling  at  his  own  prevarications. 


222  A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT. 

But  at  the  same  time,  the  non-arrival  of  Miss  Bes 
sie's  letter  gives  him  an  indefinable  fear,  and  re 
membering  he  had  intrusted  its  posting  to  his  dusky 
valet,  he  very  shortly  interviews  that  sable  gentle 
man  on  the  subject. 

"  Robbins  !  "  he  says,  assuming  his  most  dignified 
and  severe  air.  "  I  gave  you  a  letter  in  New  York 
to  post.  What  did  you  do  with  it?" 

"  Posted  it,  sah  !  " 

"  No,  you  didn't !  "  cries.  Lawrence  angrily. 

"  'Deed  I  did,  sah.  I  remember  de  box  on  Sixth 
Abenue.  Dey  was  havin'  a  dog  fight  at  de  time,  in 
de  neighb'hood—  '  but  here  Jack  suddenly  knows 
that  he  is  lying,  and  remembers  that  in  the  excite 
ment  of  the  dog  fight  he  had  forgotten  to  post  the 
letter,  though  he  keeps  on  asserting  :  "  'Clare  to 
goodness,  I  did,  sah !  I  posted  dat  letter,  sah  ! " 
and  makes  this  assertion  so  often  that  Lawrence 
thinks  it  must  be  some  error  in  the  mail  service  that 
has  produced  this  contretemps. 

This  is  apparently  borne  out  by  the  fact  that  next 
day  Miss  Bessie,  coming  down  the  walk  to  meet  him, 
in  all  the  beauties  of  white  muslin,  brilliant  ribbon- 
sash,  and  pretty  slippers,  waves  a  letter  jubilantly 
and  cries :  "  Lawrence,  you  were  right  !  Here's 
Lilly's  letter  written  in  her  own  dear  hand.  She 
didn't  forget  me  quite  as  much  as  I  had  imagined  !  " 

To  this  her  lover  returns  conceitedly :  "  Didn't  I 
tell  you  !  "  and  is  quite  contented  over  the  matter. 
He  would  perhaps  be  somewhat  less  easy  were  he 
cognizant  that  his  man  Jack,  with  the  best  intentions 
in  the  world,  has  found  the  unposted  envelope  in  his 
coat  pocket,  and  desirous  of  rectifying  his  erro'r,  has. 


A  FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT.  223 

walked  down  to  the  Cordova  letter  box,  and  not 
being  well  up  in  the  postal  service  of  the  hotel,  has 
asked  Doctor  Cassadene,  who  is  lounging  near,  the 
proper  way  of  disposing  of  the  epistle.  That  gen 
tleman,  glancing  at  the  envelope,  has  recognized  the 
well-known  writing  of  his  lost  fiancee,  as  he  reads 
the  address,  and  after  showing  Jack  the  letter  box 
in  which  to  deposit  it,  has  asked  excitedly,  "  So, 
Miss  Travers  is  in  town — after  all  !  " 

"  No,  sah  !  "  gasps  Jack. 

"  Why,  she  must  be  here  !  That  letter  is  from  her." 

"  No,  sah  !  I  got  de  letter  in  New  York.  Mr.  Tal- 
bot  gave  me  dat  letter  in  New  York,  to  post.  I  for 
got  to  put  it  in,  sah." 

"Well  then,  Miss  Travers  is  in  New  York." 

"  Certainly,  sah  !  Miss  Lilly  Travers  in  New  York. 
—Saw  her  maid  Jane  der,  sah — de  Hotel  Buckin'- 
ham,  sah.  Mr.  Talbot  told  me  Miss  Travers  is  gone 
to  Europe."  And  having  settled  this  matter  in  his 
easy  darkey  way,  Jack  Robbins,  nee  Jane  Rouser,  de 
parts  up-stairs,  chuckling  to  himself  triumphantly  : 
"  Reckon  I  had  dat  damn  Doctor !  " 

He  does  not  say  anything  about  this,  however,  to 
his  master,  thinking  perhaps  that  it  is  just  as  well 
not  to  confess  he  had  forgotten  to  post  the  letter  in 
New  York. 

And  to  this  thing  being  atlded  other  information 
that  Doctor  Frederick  now  receives  from  the  Ock- 
lawaha  boat  company  ;  this  gentleman's  eyes  open 
very  wide,  as  he  says  to  himself  :  "  Can  it  be  ?  The 
infernal  scoundrel !  "  A  moment  after  he  mutters, 
"Pshaw!  Impossible!  What  motive!"  But  still 
goes  on  thinking  and  putting  two  and  two  together 


224  A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT. 

and  finally  writes  to  the  Buckingham  Hotel,  New 
York,  and  also  to  the  firm  who  had  been  Miss  Trav- 
ers'  lawyers. 

And  an  incident  that  occurs  shortly  thereafter, 
adds  newer,  stronger,  and  more  deadly  hate  to  the 
stock  of  malice  and  malignity  that  Doctor  Fred  has 
on  hand  for  Mr.  Lawrence  Talbot.  This  comes 
about,  as  usual,  through  a  woman. 

Mrs.  Stella  Lovejoy  is  not  accustomed  to  being 
deserted  by  gentlemen,  and  resents  defection  in  the 
ranks  of  her  adorers  as  a  personal  slight.  And 
though  Mr.  Talbot  has  made  no  deep  impression 
upon  her  heart,  and  she  loves  the  Doctor  much  bet 
ter  than  her  "  naughty  boy  "  as  she  calls  Lawrence, 
partly  in  sarcasm,  partly  in  affection,  still  the  rumor 
that  now  floats  about  St.  Augustine,  that  Bessie 
Horton  has  captured  this  handsome  and  rich  young 
springald,  makes  her  clench  her  beautiful  hands,  and 
swear  she  will  get  him  back  again,  and  make  him 
love  her,  just  to  have  the  pleasure  of  saying  •"  No  " 
to  him,  and  do  another  of  her  "  great  refusal  acts  " 
— a  scene  in  which  by  force  of  habit  she  is  past 
mistress. 

She  has  always  been  pleasant  to  Mr.  Talbot,  even 
in  the  moments  of  her  chagrin  at  what  she  considers 
his  slights,  and  making  it  her  business  she  contrives 
to  meet  Lawrence  on  fhe  Alameda  one  afternoon 
when  he  is  trying  to  pass  a  longish  day,  his  sweet 
heart  and  her  father  being  in  Jacksonville,  Miss 
Bessie  being  engaged  in  gathering  up  sufficient  of 
a  trousseau  to  take  her  to  Europe  ;  Lawrence  hav 
ing  proudly  told  her  he  would  do  the  rest  in  Paris. 

At  this  encounter  Mrs.  Lovejoy  suggests  that  the 


A  FLORIDA  ENCHANTMENT.  22$ 

young  gentleman  shall  call  upon  her  that  evening, 
as  she  expects  a  few  friends  for  a  euchre  party,  and 
idleness  "prompting  this  careless  young  man,  who  has 
not  yet  learned  enough  of  beauty  to  fly  from  it,  he 
accepts  with  alacrity  her  invitation. 

So  that  evening  about  nine  o'clock,  sending  up  his 
card,  he  is  shown  into  the  parlor  of  the  widow's  ex 
tensive  suite  of  apartments,  where  the  servant  asks 
him  to  wait,  stating  that  Mrs.  Lovejoy  will  be  with 
him  in  a  few  minutes. 

The  euchre  party  apparently  have  not  yet  arrived, 
and  Lawrence  idles  his  time  away  inspecting  curios 
and  knicknacks  about  the  room. 

While  doing  so,  he  hears  the  servant  announce  to 
Doctor  Cassadene,  who  apparently  has  called  in  per 
son,  that  Mrs.  Lovejoy  is  not  at  home,  and  with  the 
vanity  of  very  young  men  smiles  and  mutters,  "  I 
down  Freddie  every  trip.  He's  not  even  invited  to 
the  euchre  party." 

The  door  has  hardly  closed  upon  the  Doctor's 
retreat,  before  Stella  proves  to  him  that  she  is  very 
much  at  home,  by  coming  in  laughingly,  and  saying, 
"  My  party  has  disappointed  me.  You  are  the  only 
one  !  "  Then  she  adds  :  "  I  am  glad  of  it !  "  with 
her  tenderest  smile. 

"  And  I,  too  !  "  returns  Lawrence,  for  he  is  looking 
upon  a  beautiful  woman,  who  has  made  herself  even 
more  radiant  and  dazzling  than  is  her  wont,  for  his 
undoing,  though  in  the  innocence  of  his  heart,  Mr. 
Talbot  does  not  know  it.  "  Your  servant  said  you 
were  not  at  home,  a  minute  ago,"  he  continues. 

"  Yes,  not  at  home  to  anybody  but  you.  I 
thought  as  the  euchre  party  had  disappointed  me, 
15 


226  A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT. 

we  would  have  a  pleasant  evening  together,"  and  the 
widow's  eyes  grow  drooping  and  tender,  and  those 
of  Mr.  Talbot  grow  flashing,  bold,  and  daring,  for 
in  her  costume  this  evening,  Stella  Lovejoy  has 
a  beauty  that  is  almost  not  of  this  earth,  but 
whether  of  Heaven  or  of  Hades,  young  Mr.  Tal 
bot  is  too  much  fascinated  to  decide.  All  he 
knows  is  that  she  is  marvelously  lovely,  as  she 
nonchalantly  motions  him  to  a  chair,  and  sinks 
down  amid  the  cushions  of  a  sofa,  to  make  rier 
very  prettiest  picture,  which  she  does,  for  this  lady 
is  mistress  of  the  art  of  fascination. 

She  is  in  some  white,  shimmering,  glistening  robe 
— part  ball  dress —  part  negligee.  The  invention  of 
some  Parisian  man  milliner  villain  to  give  women 
domination  over  his  sex.  Her  eyes,  blue  as  tur 
quoise,  have  the  varying  flashes  of  opal.  Her 
polished  shoulders  and  bare  white  arms  gleam  in 
the  mellow  lamplight,  and  the  floating  lace  about 
her  dress  makes  it  fairy-like,  though  the  rounded 
outlines  it  drapes  are  those  of  a  statue. 

"  Now,  my  boy,"  she  says  playfully,  assuming  the 
role  of  a  woman  old  enough  to  flirt  with  this  young 
gentleman,  without  damage  to  the  hearts  of  either, 
"  over  a  cup  of  tea  we  can  pass  a  pleasant  evening, 
one  of  the  last  I  shall  spend  in  Florida ; "  and  a 
slight  sigh  seems  to  float  from  her  lips,  which  is 
echoed  by  her  guest,  who  seems  sad  at  the  thought 
of  her  departure. 

A  moment  after  she  murmurs  :  "  So  you  must  try 
and  make  my  recollection  of  it  pleasant." 

"  As  you  will  do  to  me  also,"  suggests  Lawrence 
meaningly. 


A  FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT.  22/ 

As  he  emphasizes  this  with  his  eyes,  she  rings  a 
bell,  and  tea  being  shortly  brought  in,  is  poured  out 
by  her,  in  the  free  and  easy  manner  of  an  accom 
plished  hostess,  and  gulped  down  in  a  nervous 
excited  way  by  the  youthful  Mr.  Talbot,  who  sits 
with  uneasy  eyes  gazing  at  the  alluring  loveliness 
which  has  been  thrown  before  him,  to  make  him 
forget  everything  in  this  world,  save  the  beauty  of 
Stella  Lovejoy,  so  that  the  lady  may  have  the 
pleasure  of  hearing  him  speak  some  wild  words  of 
love,  and  tell  him  what  a  naughty  boy  he  is,  just  to 
soothe  her  vanity  — just  to  show  him  that  all  men 
are  as  wax  before  her. 

And  this  dashing,  reckless  young  gentleman,  who 
has  had  no  such  experience  before  in  his  short 
existence  as  a  man,  seems  about  to  play  the  role 
expected  of  him. 

His  eyes  look  tenderly  upon  the  gleaming  picture 
before  him  and  grow  wilder  and  wilder  and  flash 
more  and  more  fervidly  as  his  Circe  plies  him  with 
the  blandishments  her  experience  has  taught  her 
effective  with  youthful  worshippers  of  her  charms. 
Her  eyes  seem  misty  with  tenderness,  she  shows  him 
bashful  blushes  that  enchant  him  and  make  him 
lose  his  adolescent  head. 

Each  pose  she  gives  him  of  her  lovely  self  seems 
more  beautiful  than  the  one  she  moved  from — she 
tantalizes  him  with  her  varying  graces.  Once  she 
seems  angry  with  him  and  pouts  and  turns  her  back 
upon  him,  but  it  is  to  show  the  dainty  dimples  in 
her  shoulders — she  laughs  because  her  teeth  are 
pearls,  she  waves  her  hands  because  her  arms  would 
make  the  lost  ones  of  the  Medicean  Venus,  she  play- 


228  A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT. 

fully  shows  him  the  step  of  the  last  new  society  fad 
polka,  but  it  is  only  that  her  little  feet  and  adorable 
ankles  in  their  silk  and  satin  adornments  may  com 
plete  this  boy's  conquest.  And  all  the  time  by 
subtle  arts  of  look  and  tone  and  gesture,  she  says  to 
him  "  I  love  you  !  "  though  not  in  words — and  he 
is  as  tinder  ready  to  blaze  up — when  she  applies  the 
spark. 

"  Lawrence,  play  the  gallant  again  !  "  she  cries, 
"  and  put  my  tea-cup  away." 

He  does  so — their  hands  meet — their  hands  clasp 
— the  tea-cup  falls  and  is  broken  upon  the  hearth 
stone. 

Lawrence's  eyes  seek  hers  that  droop  before  his 
impetuous  glances  ;  he  hoarsely  mutters  :  "  Stella — 
my  God  !  how  beautiful  you  are  !  I—  "  and  in 
another  moment  would  show  his  temptress,  by  some 
wild  cry  of  passion,  that  Lawrence  Talbot  has  for 
gotten  the  tenderest,  dearest  little  sweetheart  upon 
this  earth. 

As  for  the  widow,  her  eyes  are  triumphant.  She 
feels  she  has  this  fluttering,  adolescent  heart  in  her 
grasp.  But  at  this  moment,  dallying  with  her  power 
she  destroys  it. 

She  whispers  coquettishly  :  "  Why,  what  would 
Miss  Bessie  say  to  this  ?  "  and  expects  him  to  answer, 
"  What  do  I  care  what  she  says  !  "  or  other  wild 
words  that  will  give  her  triumph  over  the  innocent 
girl  whose  heart  she  would  sacrifice  to  her  vanity. 
But  with  Bessie's  name,  the  charm  is  broken,  the 
string  of  passion  is  snapped. 

Mr.  Talbot  turns  deathly  pale  to  his  very  lips  and 
gasps  these  astounding  words — "  She  would  say  I 


A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT.  22Q 

was  an  infernal  scoundrel — as  I  am/'  Then  he  says 
agitatedly  :  "  I — I  believe  I  must  go  now.  I  have 
had  my  tea — awfully  obliged  to  you  for  a  pleasant 
evening  !  " 

And  the  girl  entering  at  this  moment,  to  take 
away  the  tea  things,  he  murmurs :  "  Good-by,  Mrs. 
Lovejoy.  I  hope  I  will  see  you  at  my  wedding.  I 
know  Bessie  would  like  you  to  be  there,"  and  getting 
into  the  hall,  puts  his  hat  on,  and  leaves  Stella 
gazing  at  him  too  astounded  to  speak. 

As  he  passes  from  her  apartments  into  the  great 
corridor  of  the  hotel,  he  sees  glaring  at  him  Doctor 
Frederick  Cassadene,  whose  card  has  been  slighted, 
and  who  has  been  told  but  an  hour  before  that  Mrs. 
Lovejoy  was  not  at  home — while  she  was  tete-a-tete 
with  this  favored  springald. 

"  That  man  will  never  forgive  me  !  "  thinks  Law 
rence  to  himself;  then  shudders:  "My  Heaven  !  In 
another  second  I  would  have  lied  to  her.  I  would 
have  told  her  I  loved  her.  My  God  !  If  Bessie 
knew  this  it  would  break  her  heart  !  "  So  going 
to  the  Cordova,  he  comes  into  his  room,  looks  in 
the  glass,  and  shakes  his  fist  at  the  agitated  young 
gentleman  who  gazes  at  him,  and  says :  "  Do  you 
know  who's  speaking  to  you,  my  masher?  It's  your 
mother-in-law  Lilly  Travers.  No  more  of  this,  Law 
rence  Talbot  !  I  see  what  you'll  make  unless  I  put 
my  hand  upon  you  !  You'll  be  a  'rounder'!  A 
good  for  nothing  !  A  '  thoroughbred  ' !  who  will 
break  Bessie's  heart — confound  you  !  If  you  don't 
behave  yourself  I'll  give  you  one  of  old  Hauser's 
Obi-seeds  and  make  you  into  a  good  little  girl  again," 
and  feels  from  very  force  of  habit  to  see  if  the  vial  is 


23O  A  FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT. 

hung  round  his  neck  in  its  usual  place  where  it 
dangles  against  the  "  silent  Bessie." 

Then  he  becomes  meditative,  and  mutters,  "  If 
you  can  keep  your  head  in  the  presence  of  such 
beauty  as  you've  had  thrown  at  you  to-night,  I  think 
I  may  trust  you  anywhere,  my  boy !  "  Next  he 
laughs  to  himself :  "  George  !  Wasn't  Doctor  Fred 
angry !  I  do  so  love  to  down  him  !  "  and  thinks 
no  more  of  the  occurrence,  because  he  is  very  sleepy 
and  tired,  and  Bessie  will  be  here  again  the  next 
morning,  and  he's  going  to  be  up  early  to  meet 
her  at  the  train. 

Perhaps  he  wouldn't  sleep  so  soundly  did  he 
know  that  Dr.  Fred,  with  anguish  in  soul  and  bat 
tle  in  his  eye,  has  determined  to  call  him  out  and 
shed  this  favored  young  gallant's  blood  upon  the  field 
of  honor.  For  Frederick  Cassadene,  M.D.,  who  has 
been  doing  detective  duty  for  the  last  few  days — but 
as  yet  has  not  proved  his  theory  of  Miss  Lilly  T rav 
ers'  disappearance,  has  just  said  to  himself  in  the 
privacy  of  his  office  these  astounding  words  :  "  D — n 
that  infernal  young  pill — if  I  don't  hang  him  by  the 
law  I'll  shoot  him  outside  of  it !  " 


CHAPTER    XVII. 

A   DUEL  AMONG   THE   ORANGE   TREES. 

THESE  peculiar  remarks  have  been  brought  about 
in  the  following  extraordinary  manner.  Cassadene 
has  been  investigating  Lawrence  Talbot's  record, 
ever  since  he  has  heard  the  rumor  that  Miss  Travers 
may  have  been  drowned  in  the  Ocklawaha,  and  rec- 


A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT.  2$i 

Ognized  his  rival,  and  his  valet  Jack  Robbins,  as 
the  two  men  who  left  the  Okahumpka  that  same 
night  at  Orange  Spring  Landing. 

Filled  with  the  idea  that  there  was  something 
mysterious  in  the  whole  affair,  more  especially  as, 
after  casual  inquiry,  he  has  discovered  that  the  sup 
posed  missing  heiress  was  a  cousin  of  young  Talbot's, 
he  has  written  to  the  Ocklawaha  Boat  Company,  and 
received  from  them  a  reply  that  makes  him  wrinkle 
his  brow  very  thoughtfully,  for  it  states  that  no 
person  by  the  name  of  Lawrence  Talbot  travelled  on 
the  Okahumpka  from  Silver  Spring  on  that  trip. 
In  fact,  that  no  person  by  the  name  of  Lawrence 
Talbot  has  ever  registered  upon  any  of  their  boats. 

Doctor  Fred  utters  a  prolonged  whistle  on  re 
ceiving  this  information,  and  mutters  to  himself: 
"  The  fellow  travelled  incognito — surreptitiously. 
Besides,  he  sneaked  off  the  boat  at  an  inconven 
ient  place  on  the  river,  apparently  not  daring  to 
remain  on  the  steamer  till  she  reached  Palatka. 
Therefore  this  young  man's  presence  on  the  boat 
was  for  some  purpose  that  he  dared  not  disclose 
to  others — perhaps  with  some  criminal  intent.  His 
presence  on  the  steamer  may  have  had  something 
to  do  with  the  mysterious  disappearance  of  his  cousin 
on  that  trip.  Though  what  motive  could  the  young 
popinjay  have  had?" 

He  has  said  this  to  himself  several  times.  But 
upon  the  knowledge  being  made  public  in  St.  Au 
gustine,  that  Miss  Constantia  had  received  a  letter 
from  her  niece  in  New  York,  Cassadene  has  put 
from  his  mind  this  suspicion  as  being  impracticable 
for  his  purposes  of  revenge. 


232  A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT. 

Though,  seeing  the  letter  addressed  in  his  old 
sweetheart's  handwriting,  in  the  hands  of  Mr.  TaL 
bot's  servant,  it  has  again  revived  in  his  mind,  and 
he  has  written  to  New  York  to  the  Buckingham 
Hotel,  where  Jack  had  stated  Miss  Lilly  Travers 
had  stopped,  for  information  of  that  young  lady's 
movements.  Furthermore  he  has  also  written  a  let 
ter  to  her  New  York  lawyers,  asking  for  information 
as  to  the  date  of  Miss  Travers'  departure  for  Europe, 
knowing  that  they  will  answer  him,  as  these  gentle 
men,  he  is  confident,  are  aware  of  Miss  Travers'  en 
gagement  to  him,  and  probably  she  has  not  taken  the 
trouble  to  tell  them  of  the  affair  being  broken  off. 

The  answers  to  these  letters  have  not  yet  arrived, 
and  at  present  he  is  in  doubt  as  to  what  course  he 
shall  take  on  this  point  with  the  young  gentleman 
whom  he  hates  so  cordially.  But  in  investigating 
Lawrence  Talbot's  record,  he  has  also  learned  of  the 
young  man's  visit  to  Southern  Florida,  and  inciden 
tally  heard  of  the  remark  of  his  guide,  that  Lawrence 
Talbot  was  the  worst  "  shooter"  he  had  ever  seen, 
and  had  never  hit  anything  in  a  three  weeks'  sport 
ing  tour,  save  the  air. 

This  fact  coming  strongly  into  his  mind  on  the 
evening  of  the  last  terrible  laceration  of  his  vanity 
and  pride  as  a  capturer  of  women,  and  more  par 
ticularly  the  beautiful  widow  of  the  Ponce  de  Leon, 
it  suddenly  occurs  to  him  that  he  can  cover  himself 
with  glory  and  honor,  at  comparatively  little  risk  to 
himself,  by  wiping  his  irritating  rival  out  of  his  track 
by  means  o^  the  good  old-fashioned  duello — the  cus 
tom  of  which  has  not  yet  entirely  passed  away  from 
Florida.  An  affair  of  this  kind  he  fondly  thinks  will 


A   PT.ORIDA   ENCHANTMENT.  233 

make  him  quite  a  hero,  and  will  probably  reinstate 
him  thoroughly  in  the  affections  of  the  rich  Mrs. 
Lovejoy,  upon  whose  hand  and  whose  fortune  he 
has  determined  to  make  a  desperate  onset,  ever  since 
he  suffered  the  shame  of  a  second  refusal  from  the 
New  York  heiress,  upon  the  Ocklawaha  boat. 

Filled  with  this  idea,  the  next  morning  Doctor 
Freddie  proceeds  to  put  his  bloodthirsty  plan  in 
operation,  and  as  usual  in  such  matters,  is  very 
cheerfully  aided  and  abetted  by  the  father  of  all 
duels — his  Satanic  Majesty! 

Mr.  Talbot,  aroused  to  bolt  a  hasty  breakfast  and 
make  a  hurried  toilet,  by  his  faithful  servitor,  John, 
goes  to  the  depot,  filled  with  the  hope  of  again  meet 
ing  his  sweetheart,  but  finds  himself  disappointed. 

Her  father,  stepping  off  the  train,  greets  him  very 
kindly,  however,  and  says :  "  My  boy,  you  will  have 
to  wait  till  to-morrow.  Bessie  couldn't  get  through 
her  shopping  as  quickly  as  she  expected."  Then 
the  ex-Confederate  gives  a  sigh,  for  he  knows  his 
daughter  has  contrived  to  spend  the  value  of  a  good 
many  acres  of  phosphate  land  the  preceding  day  in 
Jacksonville,  and  he  imagines  that  she  will  make 
even  a  more  aggressive  attack  on  his  check-book 
when  she  has  a  full  swing  at  the  dry  goods  stores, 
uncontrolled  by  his  presence  and  advice. 

The  absence  of  his  fiancee  is  not  pleasing  to  Mr. 
Talbot,  who  has  got  desperately  anxious  for  a  sight 
of  Bessie's  blue  eyes,  and  he  mutters  several  anath 
emas  under  his  breath,  as  he  and  the  major  drive 
back  to  the  centre  of  the  town,  where  that  gentle 
man  leaves  his  future  son-in-law,  and  goes  off  on 
business  of  his  ov/n, 


234  A  FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT. 

So,  Lawrence,  in  rather  a  huffy  temper,  wanders 
into  the  Ponce  de  J^eon  billiard  room,  thinking  he 
will  kill  time  over  the  green  cloth,  and  having  been 
quite  a  feminine  expert  as  Miss  Lilly  Travers,  goes 
to  knocking  the  balls  about  in  a  vicious  and  reckless, 
nervous  way,  waiting  for  some  acquaintance  to  come 
in  and  indulge  him  in  a  game.  This  individual  soon 
makes  his  appearance,  in  the  person  of  Mr.  Wilkes, 
the  Florida  orange  grower,  who  doesn't  love  Mr. 
Talbot  particularly  well  himself,  but  is  very  willing 
to  win  a  few  dollars  from  the  young  man,  who, 
though  he  played  well  for  a  woman,  is  by  no  means 
an  expert  for  a  man. 

After  a  little,  it  chances  that  Doctor  Freddie 
Cassadene  saunters  in,  his  mind  full  of  the  purpose 
that  had  entered  it  the  night  before.  So  sitting 
down  by  the  table,  with  this  idea  in  view,  he  pro 
ceeds  to  make  ill-natured,  ill-mannered,  and  gibing 
remarks  about  young  Talbot's  performances  with  the 
cue,  laughing  at  his  shots  in  a  boisterous  and  sneer 
ing  manner. 

To  these,  after  a  time,  this  young  gentleman,  not 
being  in  the  best  of  tempers,  replies  quite  warmly, 
and  with  equally  well  intended  witticisms,  and  finally 
remarks  to  the  doctor:  "  Why  don't  you  go  up 
stairs?  I  don't  see  what  you  can  enjoy  down  here. 
This  is  the  gentleman's  department,  and  the  lady's 
is  more  in  your  line."  Then  he  sneers,  "  Haye  they 
all  deserted  you?  Is  the  big  Adonis  lonely? 
Can't  he  find  a  single  sweetheart  on  the  piazza?" 

Which  remark  makes  the  Doctor  chew  his  mus 
tache  very  savagely,  for  it  reminds  him  of  the  dis 
comfiture  this  young  puppy,  as  he  dubs  him,  has 


A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT.  235 

brought  upon  him,  and  he  thinks  Lawrence's  insinu 
ations  are  as  so  many  allusions  to  that  young  gentle 
man's  triumph  with  the  flirtatious  Stella. 

"  Look  here  !  "  he  says  grimly,  "  you'd  better  keep 
your  attention  on  the  billiard  balls,  young  man. 
You  don't  seem  to  play  a  very  good  game.  But," 
he  continues  pompously,  "  you  haven't  had  much 
time  to  learn.  I  suppose  you  commenced  to  play 
billiards  when  you  commenced  to  raise  a  mustache  !  " 

This  witticism  at  his  opponent's  expense  pro 
ducing  a  snicker  from  young  Wilkes,  makes  Law 
rence  very  angry,  for  he  is  extremely  touchy  as 
to  his  youthful  appearance,  and  particularly  as  to 
his  lately  cultivated  and  highly  valued  mustache,  of 
which  he  is  very  proud,  though  it  is  not,  to  use  a 
slangy  expression,  a  "  marker "  to  the  luxuriant 
growth  upon  the  doctor's  lip,  at  which  the  neo 
phyte  has  often  gazed  with  envious  eyes. 

He  returns,  growing  very  red  in  the  face,  "  We 
won't  discuss  my  mustache,  doctor." 

"  No,  there  isn't  much  to  discuss,"  gibes  his  tor 
mentor. 

"  If  you  dare  to  criticise  me  personally,  I'll  make 
it  a  personal  matter  with  you  !  "  says  the  young  ban 
tam,  growing  very  angry. 

This  the  Doctor  answers  with  a  jeering  "  Ha ! 
ha  !  "  and  laughs  :  "  Make  it  a  personal  matter  with 
me!  Why,  young  Mr.  Poppycock,  you  talk  as  if 
you  were  really  a  man,  and  you're  as  puny  as  your 
mustache  !  " 

Now  this  slur  on  the  insignia  of  his  new  manhood 
makes  the  masculine  Mr.  Talbot  very  angry,  and 
some  of  his  old  feminine  nature  returning,  he  walks 


236  A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT. 

up  to  his  tormentor  and  soundly  boxes  his  ears,  an 
accomplishment  he  has  learned  as  Miss  Lilly  Trav- 
ers  at  a  girls'  boarding-school. 

But  the  Doctor,  having  studied  in  a  more  mas 
culine  seminary,  promptly  draws  back,  and  leading 
out  from  the  shoulder,  plants  his  "  bunch  of  fives," 
after  the  manner  of  the  prize  ring,  upon  his  oppo 
nent's  "  optic,"  and  Mr.  Lawrence  Talbot,  with  a 
faint  cry,  "  goes  to  grass  "  on  the  billiard  table. 

A  moment  after,  staggering  to  his  feet,  very  pale, 
but  determined,  he  whispers  :  "  You  miserable  bully  ! 
You  shall  answer  to  me  for  this  !  " 

"  In  any  way  you  please — "  says  the  doctor 
eagerly.  "  Mr.  Wilkes  here  will  be  my  friend  !  "  A 
role  which  this  gentleman  is  very  anxious  to  play, 
and  he  expresses  his  willingness,  while  Lawrence 
leaving  the  two,  with  rage  and  fury  in  his  heart,  goes 
to  his  hotel. 

Getting  into  his  room,  he  looks  at  his  eye  and 
finds  it  a  very  bad  one.  Then,  curiously  enough,  he 
commences  to  laugh  :  "  Who  would  have  thought 
it  six  weeks  ago — that  my  own  lovely  Fred  would 
have  blacked  his  Lilly's  eye  ?  " 

He  is  engaged  in  doctoring  his  wounded  optic, 
when  suddenly  he  gives  a  groan  of  despair,  and 
wonders  what  Bessie  will  think  of  all  this — and  how 
he  can  possibly  make  love — perhaps  even  be  mar 
ried,  with  such  a  fearful  swelling  on  his  face,  for 
Doctor  Fred  has  hit  very  squarely  and  very  hard. 

Here  his  solitude  is  broken  in  upon  by  the  major. 
That  gentleman  has  heard  of  the  occurrence,  and 
has  come  over  to  proffer  his  services,  in  his  old-time 
Southern  way,  to  his  future  son-in-law, 


A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT.  237 

"  Lawrence,  my  boy,"  he  says,  after  hearing  his 
story,  "  that  blow  can  only  be  washed  out  in  blood." 

"  Yes,"  cries  Lawrence,  smarting  with  pain  and 
indignation.  "  He  is  bigger  than  I,  but  that'll  make 
him  a  better  mark  for  a  pistol." 

"  Spoken  after  my  own  heart  !  "  the  major  adds, 
"  I  will  step  over  and  arrange  matters  for  you  very 
quickly,  unless  this  big  fellow  is  white-livered  !  " 
Which  he  does,  and  shortly  returning  says  :  "  To 
morrow  at  one  o'clock.  I  have  fixed  it  in  the  orange 
trees  behind  Miss  Connie's  house.  Nobody  will 
think  we're  going  to  fight  there,  and  we're  pretty 
certain  of  not  being  interrupted." 

Then  he  asks  Lawrence  the  details  of  the  affair, 
which  Lawrence  tells  him,  wisely  omitting  the 
shrewd  suspicion  that  it  was  not  billiards  nor  a 
mustache  that  they  were  fighting  about — but  Mrs. 
Stella  Lovejoy. 

To  this  the  veteran  remarks  :  "  If  you  hadn't 
called  him  out,  my  boy,  you  should  never  have  had 
little  Bessie !  "  and  goes  to  telling  him  various  anec 
dotes  of  his  own  duels  in  ante-bellum  days,  and  con 
tinues : 

"  You're  just  like  young  Pinckney  whom  I  winged 
once — fiery,  hot-blooded,  and  not  bigger  than  a  boy, 
but  plucky  as  old  Nick  himself !  " 

Then  he  stops  suddenly  and  ejaculates,  "  My  God  ! 
If  anything  happens  to  you  !  "  and  the  tears  come 
into  his  eyes,  and  he  makes  Lawrence  very  happy 
and  very  miserable,  by  telling  him  how  much  he 
knows  his  little  Bessie  loves  him,  and  mutters  :  "  We 
must  keep  this  from  the  little  girl.  Not  a  word  to 
her!" 


238  A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT. 

"  Trust  me  for  that  !  "  says  Lawrence  grimly. 

With  that  the  two  gentlemen  shake  hands,  the 
major  remarking  that  he  shall  telegraph  Bessie  to 
remain  in  Jacksonville,  which  he  hopes  will  keep  the 
affair  from  his  daughter's  ears. 

And  Lawrence  says:  "  Then  I'd  better  write  to 
her." 

"  Only  a  word  or  two,"  returns  the  father,  "  and 
don't  write  between  the  lines,  for  she's  a  perfect 
little  witch  at  discovering  hidden  meanings,"  and  as 
tonishes  Lawrence  very  greatly,  and  gives  him  quite 
a  shock,  for  he  continues  :  "  Do  you  know,  my  little 
girl  has  sometimes  said  to  me  that  your  letters  sound 
so  much  like  your  cousin  Lilly's,  that  she  would 
often  think  you  had  Lilly's  brain  in  your  body,  only 
masculine  and  stronger,  my  boy !  " 

So  the  major  goes  away,  telling  him  he  will  drop 
in  upon  him  in  the  evening,  and  recommending  raw 
beef  for  the  eye,  and  Lawrence,  after  making  him 
self  as  comfortable  as  he  can  under  the  circum 
stances,  sits  down  and  writes  a  long,  very  tender, 
and  yearning  letter  to  his  sweetheart  in  Jackson 
ville  ;  and  then  sighs  and  makes  a  short  autographic 
last  will  and  testament,  leaving  everything  he  has 
in  this  world  to  his  dear  little  Bessie. 

The  evening  brings  the  major,  who  takes  dinner 
with  Mr.  Talbot  in  that  gentleman's  parlor,  his  eye 
preventing  his  appearance  in  a  public  dining-room. 

But  shortly  after  the  meal  is  over  the  major  says 
suddenly  :  "  Oh  Lord  !  I  forgot  the  pistols.  I  must 
take  the  barkers  to  the  gun-maker's,  to  have  them 
put  in  first-rate  order  for  to-morrow.  I'll  go  round 
and  get  them.  I  shall  call  for  you  at  twelve  o'clock 


A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT.  239 

to-morrow,  my  boy,  and  I  think  I  will  bring  you  out 
of  this  affair  very  nicely." 

"  How  so  ? "  asks  Lawrence  rising,  for  Horton 
has  got  up  to  go. 

"  Young  Wilkes,  the  doctor's  second,  doesn't 
seem  to  know  much  about  the  delicate  points  of  the 
duello,  and  I  think  I  can  obtain  some  nice  advan 
tages  for  you,  of  wind  and  sun,"  remarks  this  expo 
nent  of  ancient  fair  play,  after  the  manner  of  the 
code  of  honor,  where  any  technical  advantage  that 
can  be  obtained  by  the  second  for  his  principal,  is 
considered  quite  the  proper  thing  among  gentlemen. 

But  the  next  morning  the  mail  from  New  York 
brings  two  letters  to  Doctor  Frederick  Cassadene, 
that  change  materially  the  major's  prognostications 
of  this  eventful  day. 

The  first  is  from  the  clerk  of  the  Buckingham 
Hotel,  which  states  distinctly  and  positively,  that 
no  young  lady  of  the  name  of  Lillian  Travers  has 
registered  at  their  house  during  the  last  month  ; 
consequently  she  has  not  lived  there,  and  has  not 
left  that  hostelry  for  Europe. 

The  second  is  from  the  firm  who  had  acted  for 
some  time  as  attorneys  for  Miss  Travers.  It  is  the 
following  curious  epistle : 

"  79^  NASSAU  STREET,  NEW  YORK  CITY, 

April  7th,  1891. 
DOCTOR  FREDERICK  CASSADENE, 

DEAR  SIR  : 

Your  favor  of  April  2d  at  hand,  and  contents  noted.  In  an 
swer  we  would  say  that  Miss  Travers,  during  the  last  three  weeks 
she  was  in  New  York,  that  is,  from  about  the  6th  of  February  to 
about  the  23d  of  that  month,  withdrew  all  her  papers  from  our 
office,  and  disposed  of  all  her  real  estate  in  New  York  City.  This 


340  A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT. 

we  know  as  we  were  called  in  to  decide  upon  one  or  two  of  the  titles 
to  her  realty,  by  clients  who  purchased  the  same. 

Noting  your  apparent  anxiety  about  the  lady  (to  whom  we  know 
you  are  engaged)  we  have  made  some  inquiries  among  the  real  estate 
dealers  and  stock  brokers,  through  whom  she  transacted  her  business 
during  her  last  stay  in  New  York.  She  has  apparently  converted 
most  of  her  fortune  into  Government  bonds,  and  deposited  them  in 
the  Central  Safe  Deposit  Company,  where  she  has  taken  her  box  in 
the  name  of  herself  and  her  cousin,  Mr.  Lawrence  Talbot. 

The  records  of  all  out-going  steamers  for  the  last  week  we  have 
examined,  and  find  that  her  name  is  on  the  passenger  lists  of  none 
of  them. 

We  have  made  this  examination  very  carefully,  very  cautiously, 
and  very  thoroughly,  knowing  your  interest  in  the  lady,  whose  late 
actions  in  regard  to  her  property  were  to  say  the  least  eccentric. 

In  case  you  should  have  reason  to  think  that  her  mind  is  in  anyway 
affected,  please  notify  us,  so  that  we  can  communicate  with  our 
former  client's  relatives. 

You  need  not  fear  to  be  entirely  frank  with  us,  as  we  have  only 
the  young  lady's  interests  at  heart,  her  father  having  been  one  of 
our  oldest  clients,  and  his  daughter  having  endeared  herself  to  us 
by  many  acts  of  personal  kindness. 

Awaiting  your  reply,  we  remain, 

Yours  most  respectfully, 

BROUGHTON  &  WILLIAMS. 

If  the  first  epistle  astonished  Doctor  Cassadene, 
the  second  one  horrifies  him.  He  puts  the  facts 
together,  and  is  more  concerned  than  before ;  for 
this  appalling  chain  of  circumstances  develops  itself 
in  his  mind  : 

First,  Miss  Travers,  for  some  reason  or  other,  de 
posited  an  immense  amount  of  securities  in  a  box 
at  the  Central  Safe  Deposit  Company,  to  which  only 
she  and  Lawrence  Talbot  had  access. 

Second,  That  Miss  Travers  disappeared  from  the 
Ocklawaha  boat  on  the  night  of  February  28th, 
1891.  On  that  same  trip  Lawrence  Talbot,  who  had 


A  FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT.  24! 

surreptitiously  taken  passage  on  the  same  boat,  left 
it  in  the  middle  of  the  night  at  Orange  Creek  Land 
ing. 

Third,  Since  that  time  Miss  Travers  has  really 
never  been  heard  of,  though  this  same  Lawrence 
Talbot  has  brought  a  letter,  purporting  to  come 
from  Miss  Travers  in  New  York,  where  Miss  Travers 
has  not  been  ;  therefore  the  letter  is  a  forgery. 
From  all  this  he  concludes  that  Lawrence  Talbot 
did  murder  his  cousin,  Lilly  Travers,  on  the  night  of 
February  28th,  and  that  he  has  kept  the  secret  of 
her  demise  from  her  relatives  and  friends,  by  forged 
letters  purporting  to  come  from  his  victim,  and  that 
he  had  every  motive  for  the  act.  For  his  cousin, 
believing  in  his  honesty  and  manhood,  had  for  some 
reason  or  other,  left  open  to  him  her  safe  deposit 
box,  he  perhaps  having  some  small  sum  in  it,  so 
that,  Lilly  Travers  dead,  all  her  wealth,  securities, 
and  bonds  were  as  free  to  this  young  man,  as  if  they 
were  his  own. 

"  He  must  have  used  them  as  his  own,"  concludes 
the  doctor,  for  Lawrence's  presents  to  Bessie  have 
been  the  talk  of  St.  Augustine,  and  this  young  gen 
tleman  has  thrown  his  money  away  very  recklessly 
and  extravagantly  on  all  occasions. 

Looking  over  the  evidence  before  him,  Cassadene 
sighs  :  "  My  Heaven  !  poor,  poor  Lilly  !  "  and  then 
mutters  to  himself,  dashing  away  a  tear  :  "  This 
infernal  monster  shall  pay  for  his  dastard  work ! 
I'll  hang  the  scoundrel  as  an  assassin — not  shoot 
him  as  I  would  a  gentleman  !  " 

16 


242  A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT. 


CHAPTER    XVIII. 

THE    HORRIBLE    METAMORPHOSIS   OF   DOCTOR 
FREDERICK   CASSADENE. 

THESE  examinations,  deductions,  and  inferences 
have  taken  Dr.  Cassadene  until  eleven  o'clock. 
Forgetful  of  the  duel  that  is  to  take  place  at  one, 
and  his  peculiar  relationship  in  this  regard  to  the 
gentleman  whom  he  is  to  meet,  he  mutters  to 
himself:  "  I'll  give  the  fiend  no  chance  to  escape! 
I'll  confront  him  with  his  crime  !  I'll  gloat  over  the 
cruel  scoundrel's  agony  and  terror.  I'll  give  him  the 
same  mercy  as  he  gave  my  poor  murdered  Lilly, 
who  would  have  again  loved  me,  if  he  had  but  let 
her!" 

So  he  strides  over  to  the  Cordova,  and  without 
sending  up  his  card,  knowing  very  well  the  number 
of  Lawrence's  room,  steps  up,  and  raps  on  the  door 
of  that  gentleman's  apartment. 

He  is  ushered  in  by  John,  who  has  a  very  dark 
and  serious  face  upon  him  this,  morning,  though  his 
teeth  and  eyes  are  excitedly  white.  This  worthy 
seems  somewhat  frightened  at  beholding  the  warlike 
doctor. 

"  I  wish  to  see  Lawrence  Talbot !  "  says  Cassa 
dene  shortly.  "  He's  in  his  parlor,  isn't  he  ?  "  and 
before  John  can  stop  him,  he  steps  through  the  bed 
room  :  for  this  suite  of  apartments,  like  most  of  the 
tower  rooms  in  the  Cordova,  is  curiously  arranged, 
the  entrance  being  through  the  bedroom  and  the 
parlor  being  the  immediate  corner  room,  having  a 


A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT.  243 

view  of  the  Alameda  and  Cordova  Street,  from  its 
Moorish  windows. 

Here  he  is  confronted  by  Lawrence,  who  has  just 
made  an  elaborate  toilet,  apparently  for  the  ap 
proaching  meeting. 

This  gentleman  remarks  :  "  If  you  have  any  com 
munication  to  make  in  regard  to  the  affair  between 
us,  make  it  through  your  second  to  mine,  Major 
Horton." 

"  I  have  a  few  words  to  say  to  you,"  says  the 
Doctor,  "  that  I  don't  think  you  would  care  to  pass 
between  us  through  other  parties,  and  after  I  have 
spoken  to  you  the  sheriff's  officer  will  do  the  rest." 

At 'these  words,  a  peculiar  look  comes  into  Law 
rence  Talbot's  face.  He  ejaculates  :  "  John,  shut  the 
outer  door  ! " 

"  Oh,  that  doesn't  frighten  me  !  "  sneers  Cassadene. 
"  There  are  a  hundred  people  within  call.  You 
can't  get  away — that's  the  only  thing  I  want  to 
guard  against." 

'•'I'm  not  running!"  answers  Talbot  uneasily. 
"  Now  give  me  your  message." 

"  Very  well,  you  miserable  assassin !  "  says  the 
Doctor  sternly. 

"Assassin  of  whom?"  gasps  Lawrence,  perhaps 
some  inkling  of  the  extraordinary  accusation  that  is 
upon  him,  coming  to  him  to  make  him  pale  and 
nervous. 

"  The  assassin  of  your  cousin,  Lilly  Travers,  whom 
you  foully  murdered,  together  with  her  maid,  Jane 
Rouser,  on  the  night  of  February  28,  1891,  on  the 
Ocklawaha  boat,  to  obtain  her  fortune,  and  in  this 
fiendish  crime  you  were  assisted  by  your  man,  your 


244  A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT. 

accomplice  John  Robbins  !  Ah  !  that  brought  you !  " 
cries  the  Doctor  in  triumph,  for  at  his  words  Law 
rence  has  grown  very  pale,  and  sunk  into  a  chair, 
and  there  is  a  murmured  "  Oh  golly  !  Oh  Lawdy  ! 
I'se  'cused  of  suicide  !  "  and  a  clashing  together  of 
ivories,  from  "  the  accomplice,  John  Robbins,"  who 
has  gone  into  an  ecstasy  of  mingled  laughter  and 
terror,  in  the  next  room.  * 

"  What — makes — you — think  that  ?  "  stammers 
Talbot  after  a  moment. 

"  Think  it — I  know  it !  "  cries  the  Doctor.  "  I  can 
prove  it  !  I  can  hang  you,  you  cruel  monster  that 
murdered  that  poor  girl,  who  would  have  loved  me 
if  you  had  but  let  her  live  ! " 

But  this  is  interrupted  by  a  fearful  giggle  from 
Lawrence. 

"  Quiet,  you — you  young  fiend  !  "  hisses  Cassa- 
dene. 

"  Give  me  your  proofs !  "  whispers  Lawrence.  "  I 
would  hate  the  man  who  had  murdered  Lilly  Trav- 
ers  as  much  as  you — yes — much  more  !  " 

"  Very  well  !  Here  they  are — convincing  ones. 
Only  don't  try  and  come  the  sympathetic  dodge — it 
won't  work  on  me.  I  was  on  the  boat  that  night  !  " 
cries  the  Doctor.  "  I  saw  you  get  off  at  Orange 
Spring  Landing — you  and  your  accomplice  John. 
You  had  the  same  suits  of  clothes  on  in  which  you 
left  St.  Augustine  for  New  York." 

"  I  admit  I  was  on  the  boat,"  remarks  Lawrence 
candidly.  "  I  remember  perfectly  Miss  Travers 
threatening  to  knock  you  overboard,  if  you  dared 
put  your  hand  upon  her  shoulder  again." 

"  Ah,  ha  !  you  confess  !  " 


A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT.  245 

"  That  much,  certainly  !  " 

"  You  went  to  New  York,  you  pretended  that  you 
met  Lilly  Travers  there.  You  forged  letters  in  her 
handwriting  to  deceive  her  relatives  and  make  them 
think  she  was  alive.  The  strong  box  in  the  Central 
Safe  Deposit  Company  was  open  to  both  you  and 
her.  You  murdered  her  that  you  might  get  her  secu 
rities  and  make  yourself  rich,  the  wealth  you  are 
now  lavishing  upon  Miss  Bessie  Horton.  Do  you 
think  she  will  love  you  after  she  knows  you  are  the 
murderer  of  Lilly  Travers  ?  Ah  !  that  touches  you, 
you  brute  !  "  For  this  view  of  the  case  makes  Law 
rence  shudder  and  grow  deathly  sick  with  appre 
hension.  But  Cassadene  keeps  on :  "  You  miserable 
murderer  !  You  wretched  cowardly  assassin  !  And 
you  threw  that  beautiful  girl  overboard,  to  be  the 
prey  of  the  alligators  and  the  reptiles  of  that  swampy 
river!  Monster!"  Then  the  doctor,  working  himself 
up  into  a  rage,  almost  seizes  the  supposed  criminal 
by  the  throat. 

He  starts  back  astonished,  however,  as  Lawrence 
gasps  back  at  him  :  "  I  would  cry  vengeance  on  the 
murderer  of  Lilly  Travers  more  loudly  than  you, 
because  if  Lilly  Travers  had  been  assassinated  I 
would  not  exist !  " 

"  Not  exist?" 

'*  Certainly  not.  The  murderer  would  have  killed 
me !  "  Then  he  says :  "  Fred,"  assuming  as  near 
as  possible  the  old  tones,  "  don't  you  know  me, 
old  boy?  Don't  you  remember  your  fiancee  Lilly 
Travers?  Fickle  one!  Have  you  forgotten  me  in 
three  weeks  ?  " 

And  something  in  his  manner  and  his  tone  strik- 


246  A  FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT. 

ing  the  Doctor,  he  grows  pale  also,  and  murmurs : 
"  Good  heavens  !  What  do  you  mean  ?  " 

"  I  mean  that  you  are  not  accusing  me  of  murder 
but  suicide  !  " 

"Suicide?  Ha  ha  !— ho  ho  !— he  he!"  and  the 
Doctor  jeers  him. 

"  Yes,  suicide ! "  cries  Lawrence  desperately. 
"  For  I  am  Lilly  Tr avers  !  " 

"You,  a  man,  assert  that  you're  a  woman  !  "  Cas- 
sadene  gasps. 

"  I  can  prove  it !  " 

"You  tell  this  bosh  to  me — a  doctor?" 

"  Yes.  Listen  to  me,  "  and  he  rapidly  gives  Fred 
the  record  of  two  or  three  interviews,  that  no  one 
but  Lilly  Travers  could  know. 

But  Cassadene  turns  this  off  with,  "  Bah  !  She  has 
told  them  to  you.  She  trusted  you  as  her  cousin, 
and  you  murdered  her  !  " 

"  Not  at  all !  I  SIMPLY  TRANSFORMED  HER  INTO 
MYSELF!" 

"  What  gibberish  are  you  giving  me  ? "  cries  the 
Doctor.  "  Do  you  think  you  will  escape  by  making 
yourself  out  a  lunatic?"  Then  he  turns  pale,  for  he 
suddenly  thinks  he  is  in  the  presence  of  a  madman 
Ivhose  craze  is  murder. 

"  I  am  as  sane  as  you  are  !  Don't  bandy  words  !  " 
begs  Lawrence  appealingly.  "  Listen  to  me,  Fred, 
and  believe."  Then  to  his  accuser's  astonishment, 
he  says :  "  You  remember  the  casket  I  spoke  to  you 
about  purchasing,  at  Vedder's  ?  " 

"  Yes,"  says  Cassadene,  shortly,  as  anxious  to  put 
a  stop  to  what  he  thinks  absurd  palaver. 

"  You  remember  how  you  deceived  me  by  writing 


A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT.  247 

that  you  were  called  to  a  case  of  snake-bite,  when 
you  took  that  moonlight  sail  with  Stella  Lovejoy  ?  " 

"Yes!" 

"  You  recollect  the  words  you  last  spoke  to  Lilly 
Travers  when  you  parted  from  her  at  her  aunt's 
house;  that  you  said  within  a  month,  despite  my 
self,  you  would  make  me  marry  you  ?  " 

"  Pooh  !  "  cries  the  Doctor.  "  These  revelations 
you  make  to  me,  have  been  told  you  by  your 
murdered  victim." 

"  Not  at  all — do  you  see  this  ? "  and  Lawrence 
produces  from  his  neck  a  little  vial  containing  the 
two  amber  seeds  that  still  play  about  each  other 
with  the  same  vivacity  and  elfish  life  that  they  did 
when  he  first  looked  at  them,  and  he  points  to  the 
label : 


FOR  WOMEN  WHO  SUFFER.    HA  !   HA  !   HA  ! 


and  then  going  on,  he  tells  to  the  astonished  Fred 
erick  Cassadene,  old  Hauser  Oglethorpe's  wondrous 
story  of  the  "  Tree  of  Sexual  Change,"  and  how, 
driven  to  desperation  by  the  Doctor's  untruth  to 
him,  to  drown  the  agony  of  jealousy  in  his  heart,  he 
had  taken  one  of  these  marvelous  seeds  to  become 
a  man,  and  that  to  keep  his  secret,  he  had  given  his 
maid  Jane  another,  and  Jane  was  standing  there  in 
the  next  room  now,  his  valet,  Jack  Robbins ;  and 
as  he  finishes,  he  holds  out  his  hand  and  whispers : 
"  Freddie,  old  boy,  do  you  believe?" 

And    Cassadene    replies:    "Believe?     Nonsense! 
Impossible  !     I  am  a  doctor.     Tell  such  a  story  to 


248  A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT. 

the  jury  and  they  will  put  you  in  an  insane  asylum, 
but  never  anywhere  else.  Keep  the  hand  that 
slaughtered  my  lost  sweetheart  away  from  me.  I 
am  going  to  have  you  arrested  !  " 

"  That  you  shall  not  do  !  "  cries  Lawrence  desper 
ately.  "  I  can  prove  by  one  of  these  seeds — by  trans 
forming  myself  into  a  woman  again,  that  though 
now  I  am  Lawrence  Talbot,  I  once  was  Lilly 
Travers." 

"Very  well!"  scoffs  the  doctor.  "Take  it! 
Swallow  it  in  front  of  me,  and  when  you  become 
Lilly  Travers  again,  I  will  love  you  as  of  old,  and  I 
will  marry  you  !  " 

But  Lawrence,  starting  back,  gasps  :  "  Marry  you, 
who  make  love  to  all  women,  and  think  as  little  of 
breaking  a  girl's  heart  as  you  would  of  destroying  a 
microbe — marry  you — NEVER  !  and  for  that  reason 
I'll  never  become  a  woman  again  !  But  you  shall 
not  make  this  public  !  My  God !  What  would 
Bessie  say  ?  Her  father  would  regard  me  as  one  ac 
cursed — she  would  look  on  me  as  weird — uncanny — 
unnatural — she  would  not  marry  me.  You  shall 
believe — by  this  !  " 

And  opening  the  vial,  Lawrence  takes  forth  one 
of  the  Obi-seeds  of  Hauser  Oglethorpe. 

"  You  will  take  it  ?  "  says  Cassadene  to  Lawrence, 
who  is  half  minded,  in  his  despair,  to  become  a 
woman  again,  for  one  short  moment,  to  make  this 
man  believe  him. 

But  as  he  thinks  this  and  shudders  at  it,  looking 
through  the  open  curtains  of  the  door  to  his  bed 
room,  he  sees  the  stalwart  Ethiopian  his  maid  Jane 
has  developed  into,  and  motions,  and  the  negro, 


A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT.  249 

understanding,  comes  silently  and  slowly  forth,  and 
then,  like  the  spring  of  a  black  snake,  seizes  Doctor 
Cassadene  around  the  waist  and  throws  that  gentle 
man  down,  and  has  his  knee  upon  his  chest. 

Before  the  astounded  Frederick  can  open  his 
mouth  to  give  a  shriek,  Lawrence  has  fallen  upon 
him,  and  squeezing  his  enemy's  nostrils  between 
his  fingers,  the  doctor  opens  his  mouth,  gasping  for 
breath,  and  in  that  one  fatal  moment  Lawrence  has 
tossed  in  between  the  white  teeth  of  Frederick 
Cassadene,  a  seed  that  springs  joyously  on  its  way 
down  his  throat  to  make  the  "  masher  "  of  the  Ponce 
de  Leon  the  sex  of  which  his  victims  have  been,  but 
will  be  so  no  more. 

This  being  done,  the  two  suddenly  release  him. 
He  springs  to  his  feet,  and  gives  an  affrighted  cry, 
for  the  winged  seed  as  it  sprang  down  his  throat, 
had  given  his  tonsils  an  awful  grip. 

"  Is  it  poison  ?  "  he  gasps,  with  a  pale  face. 

"  No,"  says  Lawrence,  "  I  have  taken  one,  and  so 
has  Jane  there  and  we  are  both  alive.  You  will  live 
too,  but  as  one  of  the  sex  you  adore.  A  zvoman  !  " 

"A  WOMAN!"  shrieks  the  Doctor.  "Fiends  of 
enchantment  !  This  morning  the  beautiful  Stella 
promised  to  marry  me  !"  Then  he  says  trying  to 
be  calm  but-  trembling  all  over,  "  Pooh  !  Rubbish  ! 
Absurd  !  Idiotic  !  "  but  finally  utters  a  faint  cry  and 
mutters  with  affrighted  eyes  :  "What  has  come  to 
me  ?  What  is  passing  through  me  ?  I  am  not  as  I 
once  was  !  "  and  sinks  into  a  chair  and  mumbles  to 
himself  and  utters  little  female  cries  of  dismay  in  a 
voice  that  gradually  becomes  soprano  and  finally  sits 
collapsed  for  some  five  minutes. 


A  FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT 


This  scene  would  be  weird  and  awful  and  cruel 
were  it  not  for  the  hideous  laughter  of  the  negro, 
who  guffaws  :  "  Golly  !  S'pose  we  had  been  brought 
up  for  murd'rin'  ourselves  !  Dat  ain't  a  possible  crime, 
is  it,  Mr.  Lawrence?"  and  chuckles  now  and  then, 
"  What  will  de  widder  say  to  yo',  Missus  Doctor!" 
and  other  hideous  samples  of  darkey  wit  and  humor. 

But  there  is  a  knocking  at  the  door,  and  Lawrence 
says  :  "  Open  it  !  I  think  we  have  nothing  to  fear 
from  this  lady  !  "  and  bows  politely  to  Cassadene,  who 
suddenly  looks  at  him,  and  astonishes  him  by  saying: 

"  What  a  handsome  young  man  you  are  !  "  as  the 
major  enters  the  apartment. 

This  gentleman  starts  upon  seeing  the  Doctor,  and 
says  :  "  This  visit  to  the  gentleman  I  represent  is  so 
out  of  time  and  place,  that  hearing  of  it  from  an 
employee  of  the  hotel,  I  found  your  second,  and 
brought  Mr.  Wilkes  with  me  to  take  you  away.  I 
demand  your  withdrawal  from  this  room  until  you 
meet  my  friend  upon  the  field  of  honor.  These 
pistols,  I  think,  Mr.  Wilkes,  will  settle  the  business," 
and  he  produces  two  good  old-fashioned  duelling 
pistols. 

But  here  the  Doctor  rises  from  his  seat,  and  says, 
nervously:  "You  are  sure  they  are  not  loaded!  I 
don't  like  to  look  at  pistols  !  They  always  make  me 
frightened.  Their  noise  is  quite  shocking  !  "  and 
Wilkes  and  the  major  stare  at  each  other  astonished. 

"  Why,  you  fire-eater  !  "  cries  the  ex-Confederate. 
"  Is  the  rage  oozing  out  of  the  ends  of  your  fingers  ? 
You  have  come  here  to  apologize,  I  suppose." 

"  I  didn't  come  here  for  that,  but  I  am  so  nervous 
about  pistols  and  such  things  ;  please  put  them 


A  FLORIDA  ENCHANTMENT.  2  5 1 

away.  I  know  they'll  go  off,  and  then  I'll  scream!" 
says  Frederick  in  feminine  voice  and  mincing  manner. 

On  this  Wilkes  exclaims  :  "  Hang  you,  Cassadene  ! 
You're  a  coward." 

And  the  major  cries  :  "  Why,  this  swash-buckler 
has  changed  his  tone  !  Mr.  Wilkes,  for  the  sake  of 
your  principal,  prevent  any  further  such  unmanly 
exhibitions — withdraw  him  !  The  gentleman  I  rep 
resent  meets  only  men  who  are  not  poltroons." 

But  the  Doctress  only  laughs  the  hideous  laugh  of 
despair,  and  says:  "  I  don't  think  it's  polite  of  you, 
major,  to  treat  me  in  that  way.  You  are  generally 
gallant  to  one  of  my  sex !  "  And  she  simpers  at 
him  and  disgusts  him,  till  he  cries  out :  "  By  Gad, 
sir,  you're  no  gentleman  !  " 

"  No,  I'm  not!"  gasps  the  Doctress  hysterically. 
"  I'm—!  Oh  Powers  of  Magic  !  What  am  I  ?  " 

"  You're  a  libel  upon  manhood,"  answers  his 
second  in  disgust. 

"You  see,  sir!"  says  the  major  pointing  to  the 
Doctor.  "  Take  this  creature  who  has  disgraced 
himself  away  !  I  feel  sorry  for  your  embarrassing 
position.  I  beg  you  to  withdraw." 

But  Wilkes  is  saved  any  trouble  on  this  point,  for 
suddenly  uttering  a  hideous  yell  of  despair,  Doctress 
Frederika  Cassadene  goes  into  a  fit  of  hysterics, 
bolts  from  the  apartment  and  disappears,  followed 
shortly  after,  by  his  second. 

Then  the  major,  turning  to  Lawrence,  claps  him 
on  the  shoulder,  and  says  :  "  My  dear  boy,  I  would 
have  brought  you  out  of  this  affair  all  right ;  but 
perhaps  it  is  best  it  ended  in  this  way ;  even  cow 
ards'  pistols  are  sometimes  fatal  to  brave  men  ! " 


2$2  A  FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT. 

CHAPTER    XIX. 

"I'VE   COME   FOR   THAT   SEED!" 

HERE  Lawrence  suddenly  suggests  :  "  Hadn't  you 
better  telegraph  Bessie  ?  There  is  now  nothing  to 
keep  her  away  from  St.  Augustine." 

"  Ah  !  a  little  lonely,  my  Romeo,"  utters  the  major 
playfully.  Then  he  adds  :  "  Think  of  the  loneliness 
that  you  will  cause  me  when  you  take  her  from  me  ;  " 
and  the  veteran's  lips  tremble  and  there  are  tears  in 
his  eyes,  but  brushing  them  away,  he  continues  : 
"  You  are  a  boy  after  my  own  heart,  Lawrence. 
Egad  !  How  that  white-livered  doctor  quailed  be 
fore  you  !  "  For  Lawrence's  adherence. to  the  code 
has  somehow  put  him  very  high  in  the  Southerner's 
good  graces. 

So  they  step  down  to  the  telegraph  office  and  wire 
Miss  Bessie  that  she  can  come  back.  Then  the  two 
drive  out  to  the  major's  place  on  the  San  Sebastian, 
Lawrence  feeling  his  nerves  a  little  unstrung  by  the 
terrible  interview  he  has  gone  through  with  the 
Doctor,  thinking  to  himself :  "  I  would  have  sooner 
faced  his  pistol  than  been  compelled  to  trust  him 
with  my  secret."  A  moment  after  he  cogitates  with 
a  sigh  of  relief:  "  S/iedare  never  reveal  it.  Poor  old 
Doctress  Freddie  !  I  wonder  what  she  is  doing  now. 
I  believe  I  have  taken  her  last  chance  with  the  girls 
away  from  her.  I've  downed  her  with  the  widow 
this  time,  certain." 

Of  this  there  can  be  no  doubt,  for  Doctress  Fred- 
erika  Cassadene,  after  a  hurried  visit  to  her  room 
at  the  Ponce  de  Leon,  has  suddenly  fled  from  that 


A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT.  253 

hostelry  and  the  town  of  St.  Augustine,  and  has 
even  forgotten  to  liquidate  the  hotel  bill,  and  other 
small  accounts  of  the  late  Frederick  Cassadene,  M.D. 

As  they  drive  up  the  gravel  road  to  the  ex-Con 
federate's  house,  there  is  the  fluttering  of  a  white 
dress  on  the  veranda  and  the  major  ejaculates : 
"  Great  goodness !  Bessie's  here  already."  And 
as  they  spring  out  of  the  carriage  he  says  sharply 
to  his  daughter  :  "  You  got  my  telegram  ?  " 

"  Yes,  dear  papa,"  replies  the  girl,  giving  him  a 
kiss. 

"  Didn't"  I  tell  you  not  to  return  to-day  ?  What 
brought  you  here  ?  " 

"  Your  despatch,  dear  papa !  It  told  me  not  to 
leave  Jacksonville,  so  I  immediately  came  on,  to  find 
out  what  was  the  matter,"  replies  the  young  lady 
riantly  ;  and  turning  to  Lawrence,  she  opens  her 
blue  eyes  very  wide  and  gasps  :  "  But  what  is  the 
matter  ?  Have  you  been  fighting  ?  " — for  he  still 
bears  the  scars  of  yesterday's  encounter. 

"  No ;  but  he  came  very  near  encountering  Cassa 
dene  in  a  duel  to-day,  my  little  daughter." 

"For  me? — Oh  mercy!"  cries  Bessie,  looking 
astonished  and  horrified. 

"  No,"  replies  the  major ;  "  for  his  insulted  mus 
tache.  But  the  white-livered  doctor  didn't  dare 
stand  before  your  sweetheart.  My  little  Bessie, 
I  congratulate  you  on  gaining  a  husband  who  will 
love  you  and  who  will  fight  for  you  if  need  be." 

Then  the  old  gentleman  turns  away  and  leaves  the 
lovers  together,  Miss  Bessie  looking  very  serious. 

A  moment  after  she  suddenly  says :  "  What  was 
the  real  reason  of  your  duel?"  then  uneasily  ex- 


254  A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT. 

claims  :  "  Was  it  about  a  woman  ?  "  next,  apparently 
frightened,  stammers  :  "  No,  no  ;  don't  tell  me." 

"  It  was  about  a  woman,"  answers  Lawrence. 

"Ah!  don't  tell  me." 

"  It  was  about  Lilly  Travers,"  continues  this  young 
man  in  nonchalant  prevarication. 

"Ah! — he  thought  she  loved  you?"  says  Bessie. 

"  No  ;  Cassadene  thought  I  had  been  instrumental 
in  preventing  that  young  lady  marrying  him." 

"  And  you  were  ?  " 

"  Very  much !  I  was  the  chief  obstacle  to  his 
leading  Lilly  Travers  to  the  altar,  and  he  knows  it 
now."  With  this  Lawrence  gives  a  little  laugh. 
This  is  echoed  by  the  young  lady  ;  who  says  :  "  I  am 
very  glad  you  prevented  Lilly  marrying  the  Doctor. 
I  think  he  is  very  insincere  in  his  attentions  to  my 
sex.  Look  at  poor  Stella  Lovejoy  at  the  Ponce  de 
Leon — how  he  has  dallied  with  her." 

"  Well,  I  rather  imagine  this  deal  has  fixed  him 
with  her  also,"  says  Lawrence,  his  ripple  of  laughter 
growing  into  a  broad  grin.  Next  he  asks :  "  But 
Bess,  how  about  the  trousseau  ?  " — and  continues 
nervously:  "Will  it  be  ready  in  time?"  .For  this 
young  man,  in  the  presence  of  his  vivacious  fiancee, 
grows  very  anxious  for  his  coming  happiness. 

"Y-e-s,"  murmurs  Miss  Bess,  getting  rosy  with 
blushes,  and  the  two  go  into  a  conversation  that  only 
lovers  engage  in  who  have  passed  the  Rubicon  of 
courtship  and  whose  wedding-day  and  wedding-bells 
and  orange  blossoms  are  very  near  to  them. 

But  before  this  takes  place,  a  very  curious  adven 
ture  happens  to  Mr.  Talbot.  Chancing  to  visit 
Jacksonville  one  day  on  some  errand  for  his  sweet- 


A  FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT.  255 

heart,  he  stops  at  the  St.  James  Hotel,  and  while 
there,  word  is  brought  to  him  that  a  lady  wishes  to 
see  him  in  the  parlor.  He  carelessly  steps  in,  and  a 
tall,  gaunt,  masculine-looking  woman  with  a  hunted 
look  in  her  face,  gathering  her  gown  about  her  in  an 
uneasy  way,  rises  and  glares  at  him,  whispering : 
"  Don't  you  know  me?" 

He  almost  staggers  as  he  gasps :  "  Doctor 
Freddie !  " 

"  Don't  mention  my  late  name,  dear,"  she  says, 
giving  him  what  she  imagines  to  be  a  captivating 
ogle.  "  I  dare  not  go  back  to  St.  Augustine,  but  I 
waited  around  here,  for  I  could  not  leave  you.  You 
looked  so  beautiful  to  me  that  awful  day  you  made 
me  a  woman,  that  I  have  lingered  about  hoping  to 
see  your  loved  face  once  more  before  you  foolishly 
wedded  another  and  destroyed  both  our  lives.  For 
the  memory  of  our  old  love  has  come  into  my  heart 
to  make  me,  as  a  woman,  love  you  as  a  man." 

To  this  Lawrence  replies  nothing,  though  his  face 
grows  very  white  ;  and  she  goes  on  again  in  the  im 
pulsive  manner  of  woman's  self-sacrifice,  and  says : 
"  If  you  will  marry  me,  I  will  make  you  the  best 
wife  in  this  world.  I  will  complain  of  nothing.  I 
will  be  your  slave — your  idolater — your  worshipper, 
my  own,  my  beautiful  boy  !  You  shall  go  to  the  club 
and  I  will  not  reproach  you  if  you  stay  out  till  the 
morning  hours.  You  shall  have  the  love  of  a  wife, 
with  the  devotion  of  a  slave.  You  are  all  that  is 
left  for  me  now.  Think  how  I  love  you  !  "  And  she 
gives  him  loving  glances  that  seem  to  him  hideous 
coming  from  this  gaunt  and  masculine  creature. 

He  shudderingly mutters:  "No  !  no  !  Impossible." 


256  A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT. 

Then  a  cunning  gleam  comes  into  her  eyes  and 
she  says  :  "  Though  you  despise  me,  I  will  still  do 
you  a  service.  I  will  make  you  richer  than  you  are. 
I  once  had  a  patient  as  a  doctor  in  New  York,  a 
woman,  immensely  wealthy,  who  will  give  for  that 
one  sacred  seed  you  carry  with  you  a  million  dollars 
—perhaps  more.  Give  it  to  me  and  I  will  take  it 
to  her,  and  you  shall  have  half  of  what  I  receive  for 
it."  And  she  looks  with  longing  eyes  upon  the 
place  where  she  remembers  Lawrence  always  carries 
the  vial  that  bears  the  one  last  magic  seed  of  Hauser 
Oglethorpe. 

But  he  mutters  hoarsely  :  "  No  !  no  !  With  that 
precious  implement  in  your  hand,  you  would  never 
reach  New  York  a  woman.  You  would  be  a  man 
before  you  left  Jacksonville." 

And  then  she  falls  upon  him,  and  almost  struggles 
with  him,  crying  in  despair  :  "  I  will  have  it.  You 
have  ruined  my  life  forever.  Were  I  but  a  man 
again,  I  could  marry  the  widow — the  beautiful 
Stella,  who  loves  me — who  is  ready  to  give  her 
beauty  and  her  wealth  to  me.  Give  it  to  me — I  will 
have  it."  And  begs  him  and  prays  to  him  with 
wild  words  and  wilder  gestures  as  she  would  do  to 
a  god  who  held  her  life  in  his  hand. 

But  he  mutters  hoarsely  to  her:  "Never!  It  is 
the  talisman  that  shall  prove  me  innocent,  if  I  am 
ever  accused  of  Lilly  Travers'  murder  by  some  one 
who  hates  me  as  you  do."  And  breaking  away  from 
her,  Lawrence  runs  to  the  depot  and  takes  the  first 
train  for  St.  Augustine,  though  it  is  a  local  and  a 
very  slow  one. 

So  it  comes  to  pass,  a  few  days  after,  in  the  beau- 


A  FLORIDA  ENCHANTMENT.  257 

tiful  church  at  St.  Augustine,  that  looks  to  the  out 
side  traveller  more  like  a  Moorish  mosque  of  Islam 
than  a  Protestant  church,  Lawrence  and  Bessie,  'mid 
the  chimes  of  joyous  wedding-bells  and  in  the  pres 
ence  of  the  notables  of  the  town  and  the  few  hotel 
guests  that  are  left  (for  the  season  is  drawing  very 
near  its  close), — are  wedded  ;  and  dear  old  Connie, 
kissing  the  bride  says  :  "  If  Lilly  were  only  here  to 
kiss  you  too  !  "  But  the  groom  says  to  this,  his 
eyes  flashing  very  brightly :  "  I  will  take  Lilly's 
place.  This  is  Lilly's  kiss ! " — and  puts  upon  the 
blushing  red  lips  of  his  newly-made  bride  the  salute 
from  the  girl  Bessie  had  loved  so  well  and  whom 
she  had  lost  forever,  to  gain  a  husband. 

And  shortly  after  this  the  two  take  the  train  for 
the  North,  en  route  for  Europe,  the  major  promising 
to  follow  after  them — partly  on  business,  partly  on 
pleasure ;  for  he  has  made  a  sale  of  most  of  his 
phosphate  lands  to  one  of  those  all-devouring  Eng 
lish  financial  syndicates  which  spend  a  great  deal  of 
money  in  America  and  receive  comparatively  little 
back  again,  and  he  is  going  on  to  London  to  com 
plete  the  details  of  the  transaction  and  add  a  goodly 
number  of  English  pounds  sterling  to  the  American 
dollars  in  his  bank  account. 

In  New  York  they  stop  at  the  Brevoort,  Lawrence 
having  selected  this  very  fashionable  but  very  quiet 
house  for  his  residence  before  the  departing  steamer 
shall  bear  them  away  to  Europe ;  and  in  due  time 
they  are  driven  to  the  Etruria  that  is  at  her  dock 
with  steam  up  ready  to  point  her  prow  to  England. 
The  great  ship's  crowded  decks  are  covered  with  the 
varying  throng  of  passengers  that  in  the  early  spring 
17 


258  A   FLORIDA   ENCHANTMENT. 

take  this  great  Atlantic  ferry  to  spend  a  few  months 
in  Europe  and  return  once  more  to  winter  in  New 
York.  And  in  this  crowd  are  other  bridal  couples — 
some  of  them,  perhaps  equally  as  happy  as  Lawrence 
and  his  fair  young  bride — but  none  more  so. 

Bessie  stands  on  the  deck  bidding  adieu  to  some 
Southern  friends  who  have  come  to  see  them  off, 
when  Lawrence's  man  Jack,  suddenly  stepping  to 
him  with  mysterious  air  and  frightened  face  and 
jabbering  teeth,  whispers  :  "  Dar's  a  lady  waitin'  fo' 
yo',  sah,  in  yo'  state-room,  dat  swear  she  won't  go 
on  sho'  till  she  see  yo',  an'  dat  she'll  make  de  mos' 
terr'ble  hubbub  an'  row  in  de  worl'  an'll  denounce 
yo'  right  heah  an'  will  bust  de  deck  up,  ef  yo'  don't 
see  her." 

Then  Lawrence  knows  his  fate  is  upon  him  again 
and  that  Doctress  Frederika  Cassadene  is  waiting  to 
see  him  ;  and  he  goes  down  to  find  the  same  gaunt 
female  who  had  fallen  upon  his  neck  in  Jacksonville. 

She  whispers  to  him,  her  eyes  red  with  despair : 
"  I  have  come  for  that  seed.  I  will  never  leave  you 
until  I  get  that  seed.  I  have  tried  to  be  a  doctress 
in  New  York,  but  no  patients  have  come  to  me. 
You  have  driven  me  to  a  woman's  desperation..  I 
will  denounce  you  to  your  bride  as  a  changeling,  if 
you  don't  give  me  the  one  thing  on  earth  that  can 
make  me  happy." 

But  Lawrence,  very  pale,  says  again  :  "  No  ;  that 
story  would  never  be  believed.  Tell  them  !  You 
will  be  thought  a  lunatic :  I  keep  this  last  seed  for 
my  own  safety." 

"  But  is  it  for  your  safety  ?  "  cries  the  once  Doc 
tor  Frederick.  "  Think  what  would  happen  to  you 


A  FLORIDA  ENCHANTMENT.  259 

if  your  bride — the  lovely  but  inquisitive  Bessie — 
ever  got  hold  of  it  and  guessed  its  wondrous  power ! 
Don't  you  know  she  would  eat  ?  Do  you  think 
woman  could  resist  such  temptation?  And  when 
once  it  had  passed  her  lips,  would  not  happiness  go 
away  from  you  ? — for  there  would  be  no  other  seed 
left  to  bring  her  back  to  womanhood  and  wifehood, 
and  you  would  be  bereft  forever." 

At  this  awful  suggestion  Lawrence  grows  pale  and 
leaning  against  the  stateroom  door  exclaims  :  "  My 
God  !  If  she  ever  got  it !  " 

There  is  the  flutter  of  a  beautiful  travelling-dress 
coming  down  the  companion-way,  and  he  hears  Bes 
sie's  voice  saying :  "  Where  is  Lawrence  ?  I  must 
show  him  the  lovely  flowers  that  have  been  sent 
us  from  far  away  Florida  to  make  our  wedding  trip 
happy." 

And  thinking  what  would  come  upon  him  in  case 
his  lovely,  but  inquisitive  and  impulsive  little  bride, 
ever  grasped  the  dangerous  fetich  he  has  in  his 
hand,  he  plucks  it  from  his  neck,  and  pressing  it  into 
the  palm  of  the  gaunt  creature  who  is  looking  at  him 
with  gloating  hungry  eyes,  he  whispers  :  "  Take  it ! 
Become  a  man  again  and  wed  the  beautiful  widow." 

There  is  a  rush  of  semi-masculine  strides  over 
the  gang-way,  and  the  gaunt  female  flies  with  a  hide 
ous  cry  of  joy  toward  the  shore,  even  while  on  the 
gang-plank — not  daring  to  wait — pressing  into  her 
mouth  the  last  sacred  Obi-seed  of  old  Hauser  Ogle- 
thorpe. 

Then  the  Etruria,  'mid  the  saluting  whistles  of 
surrounding  steam  tugs,  puts  her  prow  down  North 
River,  towards  Sandy  Hook,  and  steams  away  upon 


26o  A  FLORIDA  ENCHANTMENT. 

her  voyage  across  a  summer  sea,  bearing  to  happi 
ness  and  love  in  different  scenes  from  the  old  Florida 
orange  groves,  Lawrence  Talbot,  who  will  be  a  man 
forever,  and  his  bride,  Bessie,  who  will  still  remain 
to  him  forever  a  woman,  and  a  joy. 


FINIS. 


EUROPEAN  NOTICES 

OF 

Gunter's  Last  Great  Novel 

Miss  Nobody 
of  Nowhere 


"There  is  not  a  dull  page  in  this  volume.7' 

Daily  Chronicle,  London, 
January  14, 1891. 

"  Gunter  scores  another  success." 

Morning  Advertiser,  London, 
December  16,  189O. 

"  Well  worth  reading." 

Galignani,  Paris, 

November  24, 189O. 

"  Nothing  could  exceed   its   thrilling 

interest."  Glasgow  Herald, 

December  25, 1890. 

"Gunter's  latest  remarkable  story  will 
not  disappoint  his  numerous  admirers." 

Newcastle  Chronicle, 

December  4th,  189O. 


OPINIONS  OF 

THE  GREAT  NOVEL, 

Mr.  Barnes 

of  New  York. 


ENGLAND. 

"There  is  no  reason  for  surprise  at  'Mr.  Barnes* 
being  a  big  hit." — The  Referee,  London,  March  25th. 

"Exciting  and  interesting." — The  Graphic. 

1 'Marina  Paoli' — a  giant  character — just  as  strong 
as  '  Fedora.' " — Illustrated  London  News. 

"A  capital  story — most  people  have  read  it — I 
recommend  it  to  all  the  others." 

— JAMES  PAYNE  in  Illustrated  London  News. 

AMERICA. 

"Told  with  the  genius  of  Alexander  Dumas,  the 
Elder." — Amusement  Gazette. 

"  Have  you  read  '  MR.  BARNES  OF  NEW  YORK  ? '  If 
no,  go  and  read  it  at  once,  and  thank  me  for  suggesting 
it.  ...  I  want  to  be  put  on  record  as  saying  '  it  is 
the  best  story  of  the  day — the  best  I  have  read  in  ten 
years.' " — JOE  HOWARD  in  Boston  Globe. 

But  at   that   time   Mr.   Howard  had 
not   read 

"Mr.  Potter  of  Texas." 


That  Frenchman! 

Now  in  the  One-Hundred-and-Tenth  Thousand. 
AMERICAN   EDITION. 

By  the  Author  of  "Mr.  Barnes  of  New  York." 


PAPER,  50  CENTS;  CLOTH,  $1.5O. 


"  The  work  exhibits  the  wonderful  resources  of  the 
author's  mind  and  the  richness  of  his  imaginative  powers. 
The  characters  are  forcibly  drawn,  the  details  worked  up 
with  surprising  exactness,  and  the  plot  unraveled  with 
scrupulous  care." — San  Francisco  Post,  May  25,  1889. 


How  I  Escaped. 

BY  W.   H.  PARKINS. 
EDITED  BY  ARCHIBALD   CLAVERING   GUNTER. 


PAPER,  50  CENTS  ;  CLOTH,  $1.OO. 


The  best  story  of  the  war  yet  written." 

—Atlanta  Constitution. 


"  Small  Boys 

In  Big  Boots." 

A  Story  for  Children  of  All  Ages. 

BY 

ARCHIBALD  CLAVERING  GUNTER, 

AUTHOR   OF 

"Mr.  Barnes  of  New  York,"  "Mr.  Potter  of  Texas," 
"That  Frenchman!"  etc. 


PRESS  NOTICES. 

"  It  is  novel,  vigorous  and  never  dull.     It  is  written 
especially  for  children,  but  plenty  of  grown-up    people 
will  find  themselves  capable  of  being  entertained  by  it." 
—New  York  Sun,  Oct.  nth,  1890. 

"  His  boys  and  girls  are  real  flesh  and  blood  creations. 
Mr.  Gunter's  book  cannot  fail  to  be  popular  with  the 
children,  and  it  bids  fair  to  be  equally  liked  by  the  fathers 
and  mothers  of  the  children." 

— San  Francisco  Chronicle ,  Sept.  7th,  1890. 

"  It  overflows  with  humor,  and  is  the  best  juvenile 
story  book  of  the  season.  Every  boy  and  girl  in  America 
will  want  to  read  this  clever  work  by  Mr.  Gunter." 

— Davenport  Democrat,  Sept.  3oth,  1890. 

Magnificently  bound  and  beautifully  illustrated  by  celebrated  artists, 

it  will  be  found  one  of  the  most  entertaining 

as  well  as  elegant 

HOLIDAY  BOOKS  OF  THE  SEASON. 


For  Sale  by  All  Booksellers. 


"Mr.  Gunter's  books  are 
more  generally  read  than 
perhaps  those  of  ANY 


OTHER     LIVING     WRITER. 


The  Times. 


London,  Eng.,  Nov. 4, 1888. 


Miss  Nobody 
of  Nowhere 

Gunter's  Last  and  Most  Successful 


Miss  Nobody 
of  Nowhere 


"Full  of  incident  and  excitement."— NEW    YORK  HEKALD. 

"The  popularity  of  Mr.  Gunter  will  now  be  great! 
than    everJ'—TACOMA    GLOBE. 

"A  story  that  will  keep 
a   man    away    from    his 

meals.  '-^MAHA  BEE. 


RETURN  TO  the  circulation  desk  of  any 
University  of  California  Library 
or  to  the 

NORTHERN  REGIONAL  LIBRARY  FACILITY 
Bldg.  400,  Richmond  Field  Station 
University  of  California 
Richmond,  CA  94804-4698 

ALL  BOOKS  MAY  BE  RECALLED  AFTER  7  DAYS 
2-month  loans  may  be  renewed  by  calling 

(415)642-6233 
1-year  loans  may  be  recharged  by  bringing  books 

to  NRLF 
Renewals  and  recharges  may  be  made  4  days 

prior  to  due  date 


DUE  AS  STAMPED  BELOW 

RETURNED 

IAN  9fi  1QQ1 

NOV  1  6  1394 

UHl™   £  O   lv3cJ  1 

Santa  Cruz  Jitney 

DEC  1  0  1991 

SENT  OM  |LL 

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DEC  11  1991 

U-  C.  BERKE/  pv 

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AUG  111994 

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